Callsign Hotel Echo Lima Lima
by misswhiteblack
Summary: There are skeletons in Steve McGarrett's closet and he hates it when they start banging on the door ... Rated T for Bad Language and Minor Sexual Scenes. No romance between named characters.
1. A Little Matter of Breaking & Entering

**A Little Matter of Breaking & Entering**

**.**

If there was one thing that Steve McGarrett admired about his partner Daniel Williams it was his determination, and he had it in spades. Steve wasn't sure if it was determination or plain bloody mindedness but he didn't know anyone who could cling so doggedly onto those leather shoes and that tie. It was half past ten at night and they'd been working hard all day but Danny hadn't even loosened the tie even a millimetre. Steve knew what is was to wear a uniform and he was well acquainted with the pride that went into wearing such a uniform but he didn't quite understand Danny. He was a detective and therefore didn't wear a police uniform and this was Hawaii where most detectives wore the same relaxed clothing that they donned at the weekend. Still no amount of teasing from him, Kono or Chin had swayed Danny from his smart mainland look, neither had the heat. Steve certainly admired his determination.

At the moment, it was burning brightly in his partner's eyes and Steve couldn't help glancing over at him occasionally where he sat in the passenger seat of his own Camaro.

Since they had got into the car Danny had opened his mouth to speak several times but then had closed it again with the same determination glowing in his eyes. Steve could tell that he was dying to say something so charged was the atmosphere. He was pretty certain that Chin and Kono who were in the car behind them weren't sitting in exaggerated tension, even knowing their destination.

"What is it?" Steve finally asked, his curiosity getting the better of him. He hadn't wanted to ask because it gave Danny the invitation to complain and in that department Danny didn't need any form of encouragement.

"What's what?" Danny returned his mouth tightening at the corner.

"What do you want to say?" Steve elaborated. "You've been opening and shutting your mouth like a goldfish since we got in the car."

Danny glowered at him briefly but Steve could tell that his determination to keep his mouth shut was fading away.

"I think this is a ridiculous idea," he stated firmly.

"What is a ridiculous idea?" asked Steve a small smirk jerking the corners of his lips. He knew exactly what Danny was referring to but that didn't mean he was going to openly acknowledge it.

"This," Danny responded passionately gesturing out in front of him. "Surely there are better ways to obtain information and evidence than breaking into Richard Arlington's warehouse which could result in punch ups and lots of shooting, not to mention that if we get caught Arlington will know for certain that we are taking an interest in him."

Steve gave Danny a long look which he wasn't sure his partner interpreted accurately.

"Danny, Arlington already knows that he is a person of interest in this investigation," Steve eventually responded looking back at the road. "We have spoken with him twice now. I'm sure that someone as smart as he is knows that we think he is behind it all."

Danny didn't respond straight away. Steve could tell that what he had said had gotten through to his partner but that didn't mean that Danny had to like it. He was always the cautious one which, Steve had to admit, was probably a good thing. He didn't know what kind of carnage could ensue if at least one of them wasn't sensible.

"I still don't thinking that breaking and entering is something I wanted to put on my resume," Danny told him not looking round but instead glaring out the window at the speeding past scenery. "Surely there are other ways to do this."

Steve smiled.

"There probably are," Steve admitted, "but this is the most fun."

Danny's face dropped into an incredulous look which didn't help the smile plastered across Steve's face. He enjoyed teasing his partner especially as Danny enjoyed teasing him so much. It was true that this particular course of action would be the most fun but it didn't mean that he hadn't considered the less dangerous options. Since there weren't really any other options there hadn't been much to consider but at least he had tried. He didn't need to inform Danny of that though.

"Fun, he says. So you're leading me, Chin and Kono into some harebrained breaking and entering foolishness because it's going to be fun. Will it be fun, Steven, when Grace is crying at her father's funeral because his macho-man, G.I Joe of a partner has gotten him kill so he can gave some fun."

Steve rolled his eyes.

"Give over, Danno," he said amiable. "We both know you're not going to get shot this time. I'm going in alone. I just need you, Chin and Kono to stand guard and get me out of there if anything goes wrong."

"Like what?" Danny expostulated throwing his hands up in the air. "In case the rope snaps and you break your neck?"

A frown furrowed on Steve's brow. He hadn't precisely thought about it that way.

"Yeah," he agreed slowly. "I suppose if that was to happen it would count as something going wrong."

Danny stared at him.

"Unbelievable."

Steve didn't bother to respond. He could tell that Danny had now run out of steam. He had known that he would probably have something to say about the whole operation but as far as Steve was concerned bagging the bad guys was the main point of their job descriptions. If that meant he had to resort to a little breaking and entering then so be it.

They had been investigating the highly publicised murder of two scientists each of whom had been murdered in their beds. The fact that the both shared the same field, nuclear physics, and specialised in advanced weaponry, was too much of a coincidence for the Five-0 to ignore. Add to that the fact that Richard Arlington, a prominent, wealthy business man, and suspected arms dealer, was holidaying in Hawaii, well, Steve thought the information spoke for its' self. Hence the reason they were currently going to a warehouse owned by Arlington to snoop around.

They duly arrived at the warehouse having not exchange another word during the rest of the journey. Steve cut out the headlights before they reached the place so that no one would know of their arrival if indeed anyone was actually there. He parked a safe distance away and then looked over at Danny.

"It's going to be fine," Steve reassured him. "Arlington is at a party tonight and the last thing on his mind if going to be the safety of his warehouse."

Danny only grunted in response but got out of the car. Steve smiled. No matter how he complained Danny would always back him up, no matter what dangerous, harebrained scheme he dreamed up. He was kind of glad of that.

As he was getting out the car the engine of Kono's car, which she had parked next to them, was dying. He greeted Chin and Kono quietly as he fished his equipment out the back of the car. He hoped that the warehouse wasn't guarded because that would make the situation a lot more dangerous. He wasn't even sure what he expected to find as he was certain a man like Arlington kept all his important documents either with him or sealed in a safe at his very secure mansion. Still, Arlington ran his Hawaiian business out of the warehouse and there was a good chance that there was some evidence of deliveries or shipments that would be large enough to hide weapons. He also wanted to know a little more of the man.

"Right," he said in a business like tone as he hooked a length of rope over his shoulder and then took the safety catch off his gun. "I'm going to go in through the side window. Danny, I want you to come with me, Chin you take the back and Kono you take the front. There shouldn't be a problem but for safety's sake," he gave Danny a long look at this, "earpieces in."

"There are lights in the warehouse to the left," Kono pointed out and Steve looked to where she was pointing to see a dim light in one of the windows of the neighbouring warehouse.

"Keep an eye on it, Kono. Right, does everyone know what they are doing?"

His team nodded. They were suitably dressed in bulletproof vests and had their firearms drawn out ready. Steve could tell that Danny was still reluctant about this but he wasn't going to change his mind now.

"Okay, let's move."

With a boost from Danny getting in the window was fairly easy and he felt quite good about the way he managed to gracefully land on the floor by tucking himself into a front roll like a natural born acrobat. He'd seen that move somewhere before. Oh, yeah, James Bond. Sometimes he wondered if the comparison that had been drawn between himself and Mr Bond at some point wasn't wholly unfounded. He paid no mind to it now however.

The window had brought him in at the foot of the stairs. Quietly but swiftly he climbed up them, his rubber soled shoes make barely the faintest shuffling sound on the steps. At the top of the stairs he turned left and moved along to the door at the end. It was the door to Arlington's personal office, where he had met him just a couple of days previously for the first time. He had been impressed by Arlington. He had an inscrutable mask and a reserved manner that had made it almost impossible for Steve to get any sort of sense of exactly what the man was like beneath his exterior. He was in no doubt of his intelligence.

The door was ajar when Steve reached it and he could hear a rustling behind it. He held his breath. There was someone in the office, shifting around the dark. He saw a flash of torchlight through the gap and it immediately sent his brain buzzing with questions. He knew HPD weren't investigating Arlington and he rather thought he would have been approached if he was treading on the FBI's or the CIA's toes.

He stood frozen in front of the door trying to decide what to do when it opened. He caught a brief glimpse of a rather short figure dressed all in black and was about to call for back up when the figure turned, pivoting on their left foot and slamming their right foot into his chest. The kick robbed him of his breath as he was knocked backwards onto the floor, taken completely by surprise. He was the figure leap over him and then he was up and after it screaming to Danny as he did so.

"Got someone coming your way, Danny," he said in a raised whisper. "Not sure whether they're armed but they've got a mighty right kick."

"I hear you, Steve."

The figure was well ahead of him haring off down the stairs and he followed at swift pace, sure that they were going to make for the window that he had entered by. He was halfway down the stairs when he spotted the window the figure was running for. Not the one he had entered through but the one on the opposite side. As he reached the bottom of the stairs the figure dived through the open window and he followed recklessly as usual.

"Danny, bring the car around to the east side," he said to his mike with some presence of mind. Surely the figure wouldn't be out here without a car. He dived through the window landing with the same front roll and making sure his weapon was well steadied in his hands when he came to stop on his knees. He glanced left and then right to stop the figure clambering into a dark coloured car. The lights came on and when he looked for a number plate he was irritated to see that it had been removed. He was on his feet as the car started to pull away but when the Camaro came roaring up behind him. He stopped running and then clambered in on the passenger side when Danny pulled up alongside him.

Steve didn't need to say anything. Danny had obviously seen the car and didn't wait for him to even shut the door before he pulled off after it. Steve relayed instructions for Chin and Kono to repair to Headquarters where they would meet up later. There was no sense in getting two cars involved in a car chase.

"One of Arlington's men?" Danny asked briefly as he turned a corner after the car in front.

"Nah, someone else that was snooping around," Steve informed him as he pressed the button for the electric windows. He put his gun out of the open window preparing to fire on the car in front but the car swung to the right, cornering like it was on rails.

"Hell," Danny cursed, "this bastard can drive."

He put his foot down. Steve had to agree with him in the following minutes because it was the most aggressive car chase he had ever been in and he'd been in them in broad daylight swerving into opposite lanes with oncoming traffic. However was behind the wheel of the car in front certainly knew how to drive. In fact, they drove so well that Steve was wondering if the driver was perhaps a professional hired by however was snooping around in Arlington's office. After all he hadn't seen the figure who had assaulted him actually get in the car.

He was flung into the door of the car again as Danny swung the car round left in pursuit of the vehicle ahead. There was nothing ahead of them on that road and it was a fairly straight one. Danny slowed the car down and the moved along slowly looking out either side for signs of a ditched car.

"There," Steve shouted and Danny slammed on the breaks pitching them both forward slightly. Then they were out of the car and Danny was drawing his weapon. They both cautiously approached the car which was sleek in the moonlight. Steve looked out into the darkness wondering where the unknown figure had vanished to. He couldn't hear anything but the sounds that himself and Danny were making as they approached the vehicle.

As they approached the front doors Danny glanced up at Steve from where he was on the driver's side. Steve nodded and together they opened both the doors and thrust their firearms inside. The car was empty. Steve felt like growling. Whoever it was they had gotten away. He slammed the door in anger and was about to address Danny when something hard and warn collided with his back. He went down with the weight of it and found himself struggling on the ground with whom he could only assume was the mysterious figure for Arlington's warehouse. He could tell that he had the advantage of strength but his opponent writhed around like a slippery fish darting out of his grasp until he end up on his back with a pair of knees on either side of his head. He had lost his gun in the tangle and was about to try to shove his attacker off when suddenly the weight was gone.

He rolled up onto his knee to see Danny had a hold of the black figure and was struggling with it until he forced whoever it was to their knees. Danny's tie looked tight around his throat as though the person had tried to choke him with it but Steve couldn't help but grin at him.

"Got 'em Danno?" he asked jovially glad to finally have the figure in custody even if they were still writhing around trying to get free.

"What part of tonight went fine?" Danny complained slightly before he shouted at his prisoner, "Stop bloody moving before I knock you the hell out."

"I'd listen to him," Steve said seriously as he recovered his gun and came wandering over with his torch now in his hand. "He's ferocious when he's tired."

Danny raised an eyebrow at that statement and Steve shrugged one shoulder. The figure stopped squirming and Steve could clearly see bright blue eyes, the only things made visible by the ski mask that Arlington's midnight visitor wore.

"Let's see who is under here now, should we?"

He stood over the figure before him on their knees and slipped his hand under the edge of the ski mask. The figure didn't look up at him but instead kept their eyes trained on the ground. He could feel the heat on the skin of the perp's neck and briefly he felt the pulse in the small hollow before he peeled the ski mask off.

Black curls tumbled down released from the captivity of the skin mask and white skin gleamed in the moonlight. The full lips and high cheekbones were unmistakeable but Steve took a step back just in case he was wrong. He looked down at Arlington's midnight visitor and his breath caught in his chest. He glanced up at Danny very briefly to see that he looked just as surprised as he did by the revelation that their prisoner was a woman but it wasn't her gender that had surprised Steve. He felt his heart hammering in his chest as he looked back down at the woman on her knees.

"Axel?"


	2. A Ringer with a Slick Trigger Finger

_Here's chapter two. I hope you enjoy it.  
>Just a little translation for you about the little bit of Scots:<em>

_deid = dead  
>tae = to (pronounced tay)<br>no = not  
>ye = you<br>yer = your/you're_

* * *

><p><strong>Another ringer with the slick trigger finger for Her Majesty<br>**another one with the golden tongue poisoning your fantasy  
>another bill from a killer, turned a thriller to a tragedy<p>

**.**

Blood was pounding in his ears as he looked down at her on her knees in front of him. He could almost feel Danny's confusion but he kept his eyes focused on the shiny black hair. He had seen the way her shoulders had stiffened when he had said her name and he watched as she slowly raised her chin to look at him. The dispassionate gaze which she levelled at him was all too familiar and yet completely alien at the same time. Familiar because she had given him that look more than once before but alien because he was certain her eyes weren't blue. He caught the smirk that flickered across her mouth as her eyes sparked in recognition.

"Steve McGarrett," she said, whisper soft, in a heavy Scottish accent. "No deid yet, I see."

Steve looked up at Danny who had an exasperated look on his face and he was pretty sure that if his partner hadn't been holding their captive he would have been gesticulating wildly. He was currently opening and shutting his mouth in rapid succession his confusion mingling with his exasperation. Steve could tell he was dying to ask the million questions that were pouring through his mind at that precise moment but he sure as hell didn't know how to answer them.

"What the fuck are you doing here, Axel?" he finally managed to get the words out. "No wait, don't answer that." He sighed trying to figure out what to do with her. "Danny, put her in the car. Make sure you cuff her."

Danny raised an eyebrow but faithfully jerked Axel to her feet and cuffed her hands behind her back before dragging her off in the direction of the Camaro. Steve felt like screaming but instead vented his feelings by aiming a furious kick at the ground and wrapping his hands around his head in an exasperated grasp. He didn't know how to deal with this. The last person he had ever suspected to bump into down here was her. Had she known he was here? Was that why she was there? What on earth was she doing in Arlington's warehouse and what the hell did he do with her now?

In the end he supposed the only thing he could do right now was to take her back to Five-0 Headquarters and get some answers to the questions he undoubtedly had roving around in his mind. The worst thing was that he would have to explain to Chin and Kono as well as Danny his association with her which was something he wasn't looking forward to.

"You know her?" Danny's voice came from behind him and Steve whipped round to see that Danny had left Axel locked in the car and had wandered back towards him. He holstered his weapon with a reluctant sigh.

"Not now, Danny," he said. "I'll tell you back at the palace. We'd better get back to the car. She's not the sort you leave alone even for a moment."

He drove them back, eyes focusing on the road intently not glancing at Danny beside him who was so clearly thinking as hard as he was that Steve could practically hear the cogs turning in his head. He tried not to but he found himself glancing in the rear view mirror at Axel who was sitting proudly in the back seat of the car as though she were merely being driven to a party by a chauffeur. He tried not to think about it but his memories of her kept drifting in front of his eyes. He had pushed those memories away, burying them under a mountain of other thoughts, other responsibilities and he didn't want to have to deal with her right now.

Chin and Kono were waiting for them when they walked back into Headquarters with Danny grasping Axel by the arm and pulling her along with them. She didn't put up a fight but she had barely batted an eyelid through the whole ordeal, not even when she had recognised him. He could see the appraising looks that Chin and Kono were giving her including the flickers of surprise that had passed over both their faces.

"Hey guys," Steve greeted them promptly as Danny thrust Axel into Steve's own office and shut the door securely behind her. With the glass walls they could easily keep an eye on her but Steve felt uncomfortably aware that she could monitor them too.

"Hey boss," Chin responded to his greeting before he jerked his head in the direction of Steve's office obviously indicating Axel. "Who is she?"

"That was just what I was about to ask him," Danny said striding towards them three of them purposefully with his eyes zeroing in on Steve. "Who the hell is she and how the fuck do you know her?"

"You know her?" Kono echoed Danny turning to look at Steve.

"Yes I know her," he confirmed feeling slightly sorry for himself. This was going to involve a long explanation, a lot of questions and some significant looks from the other members of his team. He didn't like not being in control so Danny was maybe kind of right when he called him a control freak but Steve hated not holding the cards and he hated it even more when someone else did, especially if that someone was Axel.

"Who is she?" asked Chin glancing round at the girl now pacing around Steve's office. Everyone else looked round at her as well. Steve couldn't help but allow his eyes to slide over her, taking in everything he could see, trying to look for changes in her but everything seemed pretty much the same or maybe it was just her clothing.

"Her name is Axelia," he told them, "although she doesn't take kindly to being called Axelia, it's just Axel. Don't ask me her surname because I don't know. She's Scottish."

"How do you know her?" Danny chipped in his arms folded across his chest in a spectacular annoyed-Danny style.

"What was she doing in Arlington's warehouse?" Kono interrupted obviously feeling that her question was more prudent to the investigation.

"He'd probably have tae ask me that in order tae be able tae answer ye."

They all whipped round to see Axel leaning out of the glass door of Steve's study, her handcuffs no longer binding her hands behind her back and evidently having heard at least Kono's last question if not the whole conversation. What the hell was he going to do with her? He could see her watching them all with that dispassionate blue gaze and it made him feel even more disturbed than he had felt in a long time. How was he supposed to explain her?

"I was guessing that you might be wanting to interview me but if yer just going tae stand around talking about me instead of tae me then I might just head on home."

"You're not going anywhere, Axel," Steve told her headedly striding across to her, "so you might as well sit down and shut up."

"How did you get your cuffs off?" asked Kono from just over his shoulder.

"No a difficult feat really," Axel told her with a shrug of her shoulders, "at least not when held in a room with a desk covered in paper clips in it."

Steve would have felt immense relief in knocking her out at that particular moment.

"Right, everyone in my office," he told them abruptly. "Axel take a seat."

The roll of her eyes could have been exasperation but Steve didn't think that was it. She retreated into the office and took a seat on the brown leather sofa in one corner. Kono went in after her followed in short order by Chin and then Danny leaving Steve to bring up the rear. It would have maybe been better to bring Axel out into the main area where there would have been more room, Steve reflected as he made his way to stand behind his desk. He glanced over the faces of his team who were all watching Axel with mingled expressions of confusion, mistrust and downright curiosity. Axel seemed completely unperturbed by the attention she was receiving and was calmly looking between them all.

"First thing is first," Danny began glancing between Axel and Steve, "how do you two know each other?"

Steve wished Axel wouldn't smirk the way she did. It made him uneasy.

"I'm hurt that ye haven't mentioned me tae your friends, Steve," she said jerking her chin up to look at him in an almost challenging way. He felt like flinching but he didn't.

"It's complicated," he tried to forestall the inevitable which seemed foolish but anything to give himself more time to think.

"Hardly," Axel countered. "I met Commander McGarrett about six or seven years ago in London on a work related matter. Isn't that right, Steve?"

He nodded. Well essentially it was true but that didn't make it the whole story. Apparently his team weren't taking that as a proper explanation from the looks they were now giving him.

"Since she is apparently a compulsive liar," Danny said grimly, "perhaps you would do us all a favour by telling us who the hell she is?"

Steve took a deep breath. This was worse than torture training.

"She's MI6," Steve told them not daring to meet Axel's eyes although in his peripheral vision he could see her lips curling up ever so slightly.

"What like a desk analyst?" pressed Danny looking more hopeful than anything else. Axel let out a very unlady-like snort.

"She's an assassin for British Intelligence," Steve elaborated.

There was an impressive, collective gasp from his three teammates all at precisely the same time as their eyes swivelled simultaneously towards Axel almost as though they had rehearsed it.

"I think that's a bit dramatic, McGarrett," Axel told him briefly. "I'm a spy, not an assassin."

"With you there isn't much of a difference, McKenzie, Alexander or whatever surname you are using nowadays," Steve responded in a harsher tone than he had meant. Normally a very stoic person he was working very hard to keep his emotions in check.

"So you're like James Bond then?" asked Kono in a hesitant manner. She had only been introduced to James Bond recently by Danny who had made the comparison between Steve and 007 which had confused Kono.

"I suppose you could look at it that way," Axel told her with a hint of a smile playing on her lips.

"What were you doing in Richard Arlington's warehouse tonight?" asked Chin deciding that maybe it was best to get down to the matter in hand something which Steve was grateful for. He could see the frown creasing Danny's brow as he looked from him to Axel. He seemed to be thinking something which he couldn't quite put his finger on and was trying desperately to work it out.

"Being nosy," Axel replied flippantly. She had adopted a manner that infuriated Steve. He had seen her like his before. She wasn't going to give away anything unless she felt that it served a purpose on her end of the deal. She wasn't going to tell them exactly what she was looking for.

"Does Arlington know MI6 are interested in him?" Steve fired the question at her out of the blue.

"Probably," she said with a grin. "He's an intelligent man but he keeps things close tae his chest. What were ye doing in his warehouse, anyhow?"

Steve flicked a glance at his team. It was really up to him how much information he chose to share with other agencies be it foreign or domestic. He wasn't sure whether he should share any of their investigation with Axel but he knew it was all give and take it her. If he gave her something she might give him something.

"Being nosy," he replied sardonically which caused her right eyebrow to flicker up in amusement.

"So why are you in Hawaii?" asked Danny in obvious puzzlement and Axel's answering smile was a little indulgent.

"I'm working."

Steve let his eyes roam over the way Axel was sitting. She looked relaxed enough leaning back into the sofa with her legs crossed but he could see the way the two small fingers of her right hand tapping against her thigh, which only happened if she was stressed.

"Anything to do with the two nuclear physicists that were murdered?" Kono asked her as she shoved her hands into the pockets of her jeans.

Axel's eyebrow flickered up again.

"Is that what yer investigating, is it?" she responded to the question with another question but instead of looking at Kono her gaze held Steve's. He could see the debate going on in her eyes and he also knew that she was letting him see that she was having some sort of internal debate. A master of her face Axel never gave anything away that she didn't need to. Steve merely nodded.

"I'll share," she decided after a moment's pause, "but I need some guarantees."

Steve felt the tension seep out of him. Everything would go a lot smoother with Axel cooperating.

"What guarantees?" asked Danny before Steve could get the words out. He glanced at his partner. He hadn't yet unfolded his arms from across his chest and he was regarding Axel with a great level of mistrust.

"Well, I think the most important one is rather obvious," she stated with a warm, encouraging smile which Steve recognised as her effort to put Danny at ease. "I was never here. If Arlington were to find out it would blow the entire operation."

That startled Steve slightly.

"You're undercover?" he asked his mouth going dry.

Axel gave him a look which he wasn't sure quite how to interpret.

"What does Arlington need you for?" Danny asked harshly before she could respond to Steve's question. "To file his paperwork?"

Axel's icy glare seemed all the more exaggerated by the blue of her eyes.

"No," she said coldly, "tae warm his bed."

There was shocked silence and Steve felt as though someone had just hit him in the chest with a sledge hammer. He should have known, a voice in his head was telling him. She had done it before so surely he should have suspected exactly what she was doing here.

"You're sleeping with him?" he said out loud although he certainly hadn't meant to just like he hadn't meant to use such an accusatory tone. Axel's eyes instantly narrowed at him and, not for the first time, Steve wondered how a woman could look so positively dangerous.

"Two years ago when ye said that ye'd be back one day," she practically hissed at him, "did ye really expect me tae slap on my chastity belt, give up my job and wait around for ye?"

"Well, no," Steve argued back, "I'd never have asked you to."

"Damn right because I certainly wouldn't have done it. Ye know they way I work, McGarrett. I'm a woman, he's an arms dealer, and scum of the earth, and I intend tae see him brought down and if I have to sleep with him tae get close tae him then that is what I'm going tae do."

"I know that," he protested angrily now completely oblivious to the expressions on the faces of his team. "I never said it was a problem. I've been on an op with you and I know exactly how you work."

"Then what's with the possessive attitude then," she retorted. "It's been two years and if ye know that's how I work then why is it a problem?"

"I've met the fucking bastard, that's why," he shouted at her furiously.

Nobody spoke for a moment as Axel glared at him and Steve glared right back. Then the tension in her shoulders subsided and she leaned back into the sofa once more.

"Aye, well," she said softly, "ye've met Victor Hesse as well."

It was a punch in the face but he managed, just barely, to keep himself in check. He had known about that, he reminded himself. He had known that she had slept with him. He didn't understand why he was getting so possessive over her. She'd never truly been his, after all.

"So let me get this straight," Chin interrupted the tension, "you two used to be a couple?"

Steve looked at his team. There were expressions of surprise on both Chin and Kono's faces but Danny didn't seem to find the little outburst between him and Axel at all surprising.

"Well, I wouldn't call it that exactly," Axel answered Chin calmly, "but it would be fair tae say that we have history."

"I don't know why you two are looking so surprised," Danny exclaimed loudly as both Kono and Chin's eyebrows raised in astonishment. "This is Steve Mc-bone-me-sideways-Garrett. He'll sleep with anything with a pulse."

Steve along with Kono and Chin looked at Danny all with matching incredulous expressions. Steve felt that Danny's assessment of him was a little unfair and he was about to say so when he was distracted by a short bark-like laugh that erupted from Axel's mouth. He looked at her as she leaned forward, clapping her hands together in obvious amusement. Her joy tinged her pale face with the tiniest hint of pink that was rather becoming, not that Steve wanted to think about that right now.

"Steve Mc-bone-me-sideways-Garrett," she repeated Danny's expression. "Excellent."

Danny was staring at her with an odd look on his face and Axel's laughing subsided but the smile remained broad across her face. Steve felt the corner of his mouth twitching up at the sight of that smile. How long had it been since he had last seen it? Two years, he supposed.

"Maybe you should tell us about you two," Kono suggested frowning between him and Axel. He met her eyes still disturbed by the blueness of them.

"Axel was telling the truth about how we met," Steve said eventually relaxing his tension stance and unfolding his arms which he didn't even remembering crossing. "We met in London on an operation which I can't reveal the details of."

"Not unless ye want me tae gutted ye," inserted Axel with a cheerful look as though she might find the prospect of gutting him highly attractive. "I've never been a great one for following protocol to the letter so I didn't have much compunction in taking up Commander McGarrett's offer to climb into his bed."

Steve felt like blushing and was rather glad at that moment that he didn't have the habit of going red.

"As I recall it," he said calmly, "I didn't offer anything of the sort."

That smirk was back again.

"No ye didn't," she admitted holding his eyes in an intense gaze, "and I don't think there was a bed involved either, at least, no the first time."

Danny cleared his throat obviously uncomfortable and even Chin was shifting about.

"It wasn't a relationship," Axel continued blithely as though completely unaware of his team's discomfort, "no really, just ships passing in the night. Remember Munich?"

He did remember Munich all too well although the memory was no more than a jumble of black curls, pale skin lit by firelight, dark bruises, the smell of sweat, the sounds of heavy breathing and skin on skin. Something tightened within him and he was crossing his arms across his chest again. He could do nothing more than nod.

"So two years ago?" prompted Danny interrupting the moment that had just passed silently between them. Steve heaved a sigh.

"Axel was in South Korea," he explained. "She heard Anton Hesse was there and she called me."

"Ye should have let me take him," she said very softly now and the tender look in her eyes was something he had never seen in them before. After what had happened she had been very brief and business-like. Her parting kiss had been chaste. She hadn't tried to comfort him with tender words but he hadn't expected her to. She had been very brisk, telling him that he had to avenge his father as though he hadn't known that.

"You know that I couldn't have," he told her. "It was my investigation."

She didn't respond to that but dropped her gaze for a moment. When she looked back up she was all business again.

"Well, that was the last time we saw each other," Axel told the room brightly. "See there isn't much tae tell."

"I think the tension says otherwise," muttered Kono although it was clearly heard by all those in the room. Steve looked at each of his colleagues. Danny still had his arms folded across his chest with his eyebrows drawn together making him look both disapproving and confused. Kono was quietly appraising Axel from where she stood, her dark eyes roaming over the MI6 agent. Chin was the only one who looked completely calm about the whole situation and was rubbing a hand over his chin as he perched on the edge of Steve's desk.

"So Arlington?" Chin prompted and Steve was glad to get back to the matter in hand. Axel's eyes flickered to him only briefly before she looked steadily back at Chin.

"I've been undercover with him for seven months now," Axel launched into the explanation with hardly a moment's hesitation. "We've been keeping an eye on him ever since he broke his contract with us. We suspected that he was dealing to Iran and possibly also al-Qaeda, to say nothing of his dealings with other arms dealers such as the Hesse brothers and Malika Pereira so I was sent in undercover to try and discover more of his dealings. We think he is down here to try and finalise things for a big deal with the Iranian Army but trying to look like he is on holiday, hence why he brought me with him."

"Are you living with him back home?" Steve asked her trying to keep any infliction out of his tone. Axel looked at him sharply.

"No," she said, "but I did spend a lot of time with him."

"So what have you found out so far?" Danny chipped in distracting Steve from thinking about Axel spending her nights in bed with Richard Arlington and they weren't sleeping in his imagination.

"No much," Axel said with a shrug. "The warehouse didn't yield much but I've still tae get into his office at his beach mansion. I'm pretty sure he's going tae be sending a shipment at the end of the month but I'm no sure exactly when."

"What about the physicists?" asked Kono. "Did he do it?"

"Aye," Axel confirmed. "I'm certain that was him but I've no any proof. If we manage tae nail him on charges of dealing arms to terrorists then he'll go down for life. It'd be handy tae try and get him on murder charges as well but that's been attempted before and none of it ever seems tae stick tae him."

Steve considered that. He knew that Richard Arlington had been suspected before and a trial had been held in Europe but he had walked.

"Wait a minute," said Danny stirring Steve from his thoughts, "if Arlington is at a party tonight then why are you not with him? I hardly think you can explain your lengthy absence with a bathroom break."

Steve glanced at Axel in a moment of panic. He didn't want to think of the outcome if Arlington found out who Axel was.

"No tae worry," Axel told them with a dismissive hand gesture. "I told Arlington that I wasn't going through another party with Simon Wilmington so he thinks I'm spending the night with my cousin."

"What's wrong with Simon Wilmington?" asked Chin at the same time Steve said, "What cousin?"

"There is no cousin, Steve," Axel explained briefly before she turned to Chin. "Simon Wilmington is a friend of Arlington's but he's a downright chauvinistic pig and he's handsie."

Steve frowned.

"I think we've met Wilmington," he said to Danny briefly. "I think he was on his way in to see Arlington at the same time Danny and I were coming out. Is he someone we need to be taking an interest in?"

"I'd keep an eye on him," Axel said with a considering look on her face, "but I wouldn't listen into his conversations unless ye want tae be bored tae death."

Steve nodded, grateful for the information. He wanted to take Arlington down even more now than he had before. As much as he wished Axel was not here he couldn't help but admitting, even if it was only to himself, that she was terribly useful. She was also an old hand at undercover work with the majority of her missions coming out successfully, well, at least the ones he had known about.

"So are you all right to work with us on this one?" he asked her not bothering to enquire what the rest of his team thought of the notion. If British Intelligence were onto Arlington then it would surely be useful to have them on side. If they wanted to put him on trial back in England then Steve wouldn't contest it but whilst he was here in Hawaii, Arlington was as much his problems as he was Britain's, and, by extension, Axel's.

"Just like old times," Axel said rising to her feet with one corner of her mouth curling up and she stuck her hand out towards him. He grasped it in his one and dealt her one firm shake before letting go. He felt like his skin was burning from the touch of her.

"We'll set you up with comms," said Danny reluctantly and Steve could tell he disapproved of bring her on board with them.

"Where are you supposed to be staying tonight?" Kono asked out of curiosity.

Axel shrugged.

"Well, I thought I'd take the car down tae the beach and sleep in it there," she said nonchalantly. "I've been almost everywhere else in the world but this is my first trip to Hawaii. So can you two cowboys drop me back off at my car?"

She looked between Steve and Danny.

"Sure," said Danny a little stiffly but Steve interrupted him.

"You're staying with me."

Axel looked almost as startled as Danny did but the former managed to control her face a lot better than his partner. Even Kono and Chin looked mildly surprised by what he had just said. Steve frowned around at them all. Surely it wasn't strange to offer her a place to sleep after hearing that she was going to sleep in her car.

"Steven, that is not a good idea," said Danny stubbornly. "If the woman is an assassin ..."

"I doubt she's going to slit my throat," he spoke over Danny but didn't take his eyes of Axel. "Right?"

Axel grinned.

"Right."

"Well, if she's staying with you then so am I," Danny insisted.

"God, Danno," laughed Steve clapping a hand on his partner's shoulder, "scared of a woman."

"You forget," Danny responded, "my ex-wife is English and she's fierce enough. The Scots are even worse."

"Why is that?" asked Chin curiously looking at Danny but it was Axel that responded.

"It's the accent," she said with a smile. "Nobody trusts ye when they can't understand a word yer saying."

"I understand you perfectly fine," said Kono puzzled.

"Aye, well," said Axel with a smile, "I've been toning it down. Ye wait 'til my dander's up."

Danny, Chin and Kono looked at her mystified at that.

"By that she means her accent gets worse when she's angry," Steve explained. "Right Axel shall we go and pick up your car?"

* * *

><p><em>Well, I hope you enjoyed it. It was a rather long chapter this time. Reviews make my day so if you'd like to let me know what you think just click the button.<em>

_Kerr x._


	3. Cause I May Be Bad

_More translation for the masses =)_

_Gowk – idiot  
>nae – no<br>palaver – fuss  
>mair – more<br>stramash – fuss  
>cannae – can't<br>whit – what  
>Aam – I'm<br>aboot – about  
>mah – my<br>wasnae – wasn't  
>intae – into<br>Ah – I  
>oan – on<br>masel' – myself  
>yersel' – yourself<br>dae – do  
>oot – out<br>nane – none_

* * *

><p><strong>Cause I may be bad<br>**but I'm perfectly good at it  
>sex in the air<br>I don't care  
>I love the smell of it<br>_- S&M, Rihanna_

**.**

Steve had never been so glad to finally reach his front door. After sending Kono and Chin home he had gone with Danny to take Axel back to her abandoned car. He had to admit that Danny did a wonderful impersonation of a man who'd had his tongue cut out. His disapproving air filled the entire car until Steve felt like he might suffocate with it. Even after Axel had got into her own car to follow them home Danny didn't say a word. He didn't really need to though. Steve felt as though he could read his mind and hear it shouting at him. He knew Danny had no reason to trust Axel but Steve knew she wasn't about to butcher them in their sleep.

As much as he didn't want to admit it though he felt quite touched by Danny's insistence that he would also stay at his house even though Steve would have liked to talk to Axel on his own. Having her reappear in his life after two years warranted some time to talk things through, especially considering the situation.

By the time he had unlocked his front door Axel had parked up, grabbed a non-descript black rucksack from the boot of her car and was heading towards the porch. He flicked on the lights as Danny followed him inside his condemnation wafting before him and saturating the house with it. Steve couldn't help but roll his eyes. He wondered briefly who he would put in his spare room. He knew Axel wouldn't have any qualms about sleeping on the couch but from what he remembered she wasn't the pyjama wearing type.

"Right on the beach I see," Axel commented as she closed the door behind her. "I'll be able to have my morning swim."

She smiled at him, eyes twinkling as though she was amused by something. Steve realised she was probably remembering the times they had swam together in the morning. Not that swimming was all they had done.

"Are you wearing contacts?" he asked her suddenly as he noticed once again the alien blueness of her eyes.

She blinked briefly taken unawares before her signature smirk slid back on her face.

"Ye remember the colour of my eyes now, do ye?" she said obviously taking great enjoyment in his discomfort. "Aye, I've got contacts in. I'll need tae take them out. Do ye have a decent mirror in this house?"

Steve nodded indicating the door to the bathroom.

"Do ye mind if I take a show? I'll need tae borrow a towel."

His chest constricted for the second time that evening but he duly showed her where he kept the towels and the left her in the bathroom. With her out of the way for the moment Steve squared his shoulders and headed for the kitchen preparing to deal with his disapproving and, infinitely, hot-headed partner.

"You are unbelievable," Danny greeted his entrance to the kitchen loudly. "Are there any other ex-girlfriends that we might bump into whilst breaking into a murder suspect's, and might I add, international arms dealer's property because if there are I want to bloody know about them?"

Steve opened his mouth to answer but before he could get out a single sound Danny snapped,

"Just don't talk to me."

"Well how am I supposed to ..."

"Just. Don't. Talk," Danny repeated through gritted teeth and Steve promptly shut his mouth. He was well acquainted with his partner by now. Danny would calm down in his own time and not before. Trying to force the issue would only make things worse.

Danny gave an exasperated sigh, puffing up his cheeks and then releasing the air in a slow, controlled manner. Steve just watched him patiently as he tried to calm himself down. He didn't really understand why Danny was so pissed off. It wasn't like he had ever expected Axel to turn up in Hawaii, at least not without a phone call. Then again he wasn't sure if he'd have mentioned her to his team even if he had been forewarned. Axel wasn't the easiest person to explain and neither was the strange relationship they had had.

"Where is she?" Danny asked finally glancing over Steve's shoulder as though she might appear suddenly in the doorway.

"She's taking a shower," Steve told him jerking his head in the general direction of the bathroom. He was having trouble concentrating on Danny when he was thinking about the fact that Axel was currently having a shower in his bathroom.

"Do you really think it's a good idea having her stay here?" Danny was saying when Steve managed to focus again. Danny had drawn his palms together and was waving them slightly up and down to emphasise his point. "The woman's a bloody spook and not even for our own country."

"I trust her with my life," Steve said simply with a genial shrug of his shoulders. He felt slightly startled by his own admission. When he had first met Axel he had constantly watched his back in case she found it worthwhile to stick a knife in there somewhere. He didn't remember when he had stopped but somewhere along the past seven years he must have ceased worrying.

"Forgive me if I'm not convinced," Danny snapped grumpily. "Remember your old buddy, Nick Taylor? Do you remember what happened there?"

"That was completely different," Steve protested.

"Oh, I forgot, it was completely different because you weren't fucking Nick Taylor."

"Is that really what is bugging you, Danny?" Steve yelled back at his partner. "Is it that I've slept with her?"

"It's because you're fucking blinded," Danny shouted. "I don't care how many girls you stick your cock in, it's none of my business but whatever happened between you and her it's a lot bigger than just having a fuck on the odd occasion."

Steve glared at him for a moment but then relaxed when he realised his hands were balled up into fists.

"What would you know about it?" he asked his partner throttling his voice down to the calmest tone he could manage. "Were you there?"

Danny gave him an odd look but he seemed to have gotten whatever he wanted off his chest. Danny wasn't the one who usually took risks, Steve knew that was his job really, and Danny certainly didn't like to be put in a situation which could be a risk to his life. Therefore, the idea of staying in a house with a woman who was a spy and assassin for British Intelligence whom he didn't completely trust was weighing heavily on his mind.

"No, I wasn't," Danny told him with a sigh, "but it's written all over you both, or should I say, it's written all over you. I can't read a thing off her."

That took Steve back slightly.

"When did you ..."

"Start being able to read you?" Danny interrupted him, finishing his sentence. "I have been you partner for two years now. You aren't as inscrutable as you think."

Momentarily stumped Steve didn't reply and Danny didn't bother to bridge the silence. They both just stood there awkwardly, watching each other. Steve wasn't sure what to say. He wanted to reassure his partner that he knew what he was doing and that he knew Axel well enough to know that she wouldn't harm then or double cross them in any way but he also knew exactly what Danny's reaction to that would be.

"I need a beer," he said at last as he headed for the fridge. "Do you want one?"

There was a brief flicker of hesitation on Danny's face before he nodded.

"Go on then," he said. "I could use it."

Steve grinned at his partner before he ducked into the fridge for the six pack of beers that was about the only thing in there. He straightened back up, closed the fridge door before he turned to look at Danny and nearly dropped the beer on the floor. Standing in the doorway behind Danny soaking wet and in the smallest towel imaginable without it being indecent was Axel. Her long black hair was draped over her shoulder and was dripped water onto her chest. Her eyes were now back to normal, the colour of wet slate in the sunshine, and her lips were curved up at the corners. Steve had a flashback of a hotel room in Cyprus when he had left her only a hand towel to dry herself with.

"Can I have a beer?" she asked startling Danny who seemed to jump and swing round at the same time. "By the way, I think you need bigger towels."

Steve felt like groaning when he recognised that it was one of his sister Mary's hair towels that Axel had wrapped around her but he just managed not to. He could only see the back of Danny's head but he could well imagine the expression on his partner's face. Axel, as per usual, looked completely unbothered as though being mostly naked in his house was a regular occurrence.

"Did you search for the smallest towel?" Danny asked her looking her up and down. Axel glanced down at herself and then shrugged.

"I heard the word beer and grabbed the first towel I could lay my hands on," she told them with a wicked grin. "As Commander McGarrett had seen me naked, on more than one occasion, the towel was all for ye, Detective Williams."

Steve closed his eyes briefly as he exhaled strongly though his nose. When he opened them again Danny was staring at him with an expression which clearly said, "Is she for real?"

"Axel, put some clothes on," Steve told her catching the mischievous twinkle in her eyes. "I'll get you a beer."

Axel smiled widely before she left the kitchen, hopefully to go and put on some clothes.

"Don't say anything," Steve said to Danny who was giving him a look which meant he was about to expostulate over the situation. Steve headed through to the living room with Danny right behind him and plonked the beers on the coffee table whilst he searched for a bottle opener in one of the drawers of his desk. He handed Danny a beer before settling down onto his couch with his own. Danny perched on the edge of the armchair.

"She's got some legs on her," Danny commented after a few moments of silence. Steve grinned at him, glad to see he had gotten over his little fit of anger. He was also amused to find that no matter how angry Danny was he was entirely capable of looking at a woman.

"She could strangle you with those legs," Steve told him before taking a sip of his beer. It was nice a cool against his throat as he remembered suddenly that early in the night he had ended up on his back with Axel's thighs wrapped around his head. He was almost certain that even if Danny hadn't been there he would have managed to shove her off in time, almost.

"You're fucked up, you know?" his partner told him.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Your fucking relationships," Danny explained rubbing the flat of his palm across his chin. "Who sleeps with a woman whose only loyalty is to her country and who can strangle you with her legs?"

"Me, apparently," Steve said trying to look unconcerned by this evaluation.

"Fucked up. Here I thought Lieutenant Rollins was the normal type but you've been covering up this little bombshell."

"Would I be that little bombshell then?"

Axel appeared from nowhere again making Danny jump.

"Could you not do that?" he exclaimed turning to look at her.

"How?" replied Axel with a grin.

"Oh I don't know," Danny retorted with heat, "maybe by announcing your presence instead of just sneaking up."

Steve laughed as Axel grinned even more broadly.

"She means why, Danny," Steve informed his partner, "not actually how. It's a Scottish thing."

Danny looked puzzled but Steve was suddenly preoccupied by something else.

"Axel, are you wearing my shirt?"

She was standing just inside the living room, behind Danny, wearing one of his white shirts. It reached only her mid thigh and he could see the shadow of black underwear beneath it. Her hair was still wet but swept back from her face, turning the shirt see-through where it dripped.

"Aye," she replied as she moved further into the room, grabbing an open beer off the table and dropping onto the sofa next to him. "I didn't bring any pyjamas and I didn't think Detective Williams would appreciate me wandering around in my underwear. Anyways, isn't this the shirt I bought ye from Duchamp in London?"

Now she was closer to him Steve could see that it was in fact the shirt she had bought him. The very faint silk lines that ran through the shirt were unmistakable. He rarely wore it any more but more due to not having the occasion to wear it and not damage it in any way.

"Hardly ships passing in the night if you're buying him shirts," Danny commented.

Axel rolled her eyes. Steve was pleased that she had taken out her contacts. It wasn't so disturbing to look at her when her eyes were their usual colour.

"He'd have looked like a right gowk if he'd turned up tae a dinner party in a tux with no shirt, aye?" Axel responded levelly.

"Eh, translation please?" said Danny looking at Steve much in the same way he did when Steve started talking in what Danny called "Army speech".

"Gowk means idiot," Steve told him briefly and then added, "Keep it down on the Scots."

Axel just shrugged and took a sip of her beer. Steve couldn't help watching her, the way her throat moved as she swallowed, the pale skin still flushed from the shower. It was only then that he noticed a silvery line just coming out of her hair line.

"What is that?" he asked her in a voice that could have belonged to a father talking to a child who had drawn on the walls.

"What is what?" asked Danny a frown creasing his brow.

Axel was just looking at Steve in a blank manner but he didn't bother to explain. Instead he swept his hand through her hair pushing it up so he could get a look at the long, jagged scar that ran from her hairline to the middle of her skull. She certainly hadn't had that two years ago.

"Oh that," said Axel blithely, "it's another war wound tae add tae my collection."

"What is it?" Danny came closer to have a look. "What the hell did that?"

"An axe."

There was silence for a heartbeat as Steve automatically let go of her to stare in horror. Axel didn't show any signs of concern about the fact that she had been hit in the head with an axe and continued to sip her beer as though she might have just told him that she had broken a nail when she had been picking up some heavy boxes.

"An axe?" said Danny voicing Steve's own disbelief. "Who hit you with an axe?"

"Oh some big bloke," Axel told them. "It bled like hell but luckily it was just a glancing blow. I spent three weeks in hospital having scans of all sorts. My superiors had a right palaver over it but in the end everything was fine. I had told them that there was no point causing a stramash about it."

Danny shook his head.

"I don't think I understood much of that," he said. "It's an ugly scar. It's a good thing your hair covers it up."

"What the hell were you doing to have someone hit you with an axe?" Steve just managed not to shout. Axel's eyes narrowed dangerously at the tone of his voice and Danny immediately took a step back from the two of them.

"My job," Axel practically growled. "What is it to you?"

"It's almost like you go out of your way to get seriously injured."

"Hardly!" she exclaimed in outrage. "I've got my share of war wounds but it's no like I spend half my life in and out of hospitals."

"Every time I saw you, you had a new scar and what about South Korea?"

"Whit aboot it? It wasnae like it was a big deal. It was nae mair than a wee scratch."

"A scratch," Steve responded irately. "It's was a large gash up the underside of your arm."

"A scratch, it wasnae like I had tae go tae the hospital. Yer getting yersel' a' worked up aboot nothin'. It's no like I cannae look after masel'. Aam a British agent, we're the feckin' best trained in the world. I ken how tae handle masel'."

"Considering the situations you get yourself into ..."

"It's nane o' yer friggin' business whit Ah dae or how Ah gang aboot it, McGarrett. The situations Ah get masel' intae are mah ain concern an' anythin' Ah get masel' intae is usually oan purpose. Ah aye get masel' oot o' it."

With the two of them shouting at each other on the couch Danny had just stood back to watch but it was at that moment he decided to interrupt.

"Look if you two are just going to shout at each other," he said, "and, trust me, I don't understand anything that is coming out of your mouth Axel, then I'm going to go to bed. I'll also tell you that for ships passing in the night you sound like an old married couple."

They both backed down immediately. Axel slumped back in the sofa, pulling her left knee up under her chin and taking a sip of her beer. Steve leaned forward, his elbows on his knees and rubbed a hand over his chin, feeling the scratch of his stubble against the palm of his hand. He glanced up at Danny who was looking rather relieved that they had stopped shouting at each other. Steve should have known not to bring up South Korea. Axel's injury had been the only thing that had roused him out of his single minded state to hunt down Victor Hesse and kill him.

"Right, I'm going to go to bed," Danny told them, "and let you two work out your issues."

Steve glanced at Axel and then back at Danny.

"Goodnight, Danno," he said. "You want to take my room and I'll sleep on the couch?"

"Nah, I'll sleep in the spare room. I wouldn't want to be tumbled on in the middle of the night."

Steve raised an eyebrow but Danny just smiled at him before he left the room, taking his beer with him. Steve wanted to say something about his last comment but he didn't really have a witty enough response to that. He just watched Danny's retreating back until he was gone before he turned back to Axel.

"I like yer partner," she said with a smile.

"I don't think the feeling is mutual," Steve informed her lightly.

"Aye, I received that message loud and clear," she told him. "I'm sure he'll look back on this night with fondness in his later years of life."

"Well he's got the spare room. I'll take the couch if you want my bed."

Axel shook her head almost fiercely.

"Definitely not, I'll sleep on the couch. I'd sleep in yer bed next tae you but I don't want tae give Detective Williams any ideas and anyways, ye wouldn't be able tae keep yer hands of me."

"Haha, you wish," he responded but his memory immediately bombarded him with memories that completely contradicted his sarcastic comment.

Axel smiled but an awkward silence developed between them. Steve just looked at her trying to figure out something to say. There was a lot he wanted to say but he didn't seem to be able to find the words to tell her. Unusually for her Axel wasn't meeting his gaze. She was looking down at her feet.

"Did ye get him?" she asked unexpectedly but he knew exactly who she was talking about.

"Yeah, I got him. He's in jail."

Her eyebrows flickered up.

"Ye didn't kill him?"

He shook his head. He had wanted to. In fact, the first time he had caught up with him he had put two bullets into Victor Hesse but he had survived that, only to come back to strap a bomb around Chin's neck. He had caught him that time and now he was rotting in a jail cell.

"I'd have killed him," Axel stated.

Steve only smiled in response to that. Axel was an orphan with no family. She had grown up going in and out of foster homes, relying solely on herself with no attachments to anyone. It had made her the perfect candidate to become a spy for British Intelligence. Steve had seen her military file. She had joined the army at sixteen into the intelligence section. Her report described her as dedicated, focused with a sharp mind and a sharper tongue but it also portrayed a loner who didn't trust other people and who didn't form close friendships with anyone although she was well liked, excellent at hand to hand combat and skilled in marksmanship. He knew she didn't really understand how he felt about his father being murdered. She spent her life in dangerous situations surrounded by dangerous criminals and she didn't form attachments.

"You know, I'm sorry," he said quietly.

"For what?" she asked and Steve was amused to see that Axel was in fact genuinely surprised and not making any attempt to hide it.

"For not getting in touch."

"Pfft," said Axel waving her hand to dismiss his apology. "We were never good at getting in touch and I was busy anyway. Still, it's been a while."

He had to agree with that. For five years they had bumped into each other all over the world, acting like a couple of love sick teenagers and barely able to keep their hands off each other. All it had ever taken was the one text to let him know where she was and if he was in the area he would go to her. Sometimes he even went to her when he wasn't in the area and had time to spare. Then two years ago it had all disappeared. After he left to avenge his father he no longer received those texts and he didn't send them.

"Did you miss me?" he asked in a teasing manner.

"Did ye think about me?" she responded with a smile.

"Not at all," they answered together with the ghost of a familiar joke on their faces. They both took a sip of their beers at the same time almost as though they were programmed.

"What time do you need to be back tomorrow?" he asked her.

"I'll definitely need tae be back by half five," she told him. "Arlington's got a meeting and I'm supposed tae be translating."

"You speak Hawaiian now, do you?"

"Even if I did I wouldn't be needing it," Axel told him with a grin. "He's meeting with a Frenchman named Louis Bardot."

"Another arms dealer?" he asked.

"No, I think he's an accountant of some type. Arlington is transferring resources to France at the moment, probably tae be on the safe side because America doesn't have an extradition treaty with France. He only set up the meeting yesterday so I have a feeling that yours and Detective William's presence is setting him on the defensive."

Steve took a slow sip of his beer. He wasn't quite sure what to make of that situation but he was tired enough to not want to bother. If Axel didn't have to be back until half five that gave them time to go through their game plan.

"So what are you going to say if Arlington finds out you were here?" he said voicing only a little of the concern that had been in the back of his head since they had busted her earlier in the night.

"Easy," she said dismissively. "You could pass for my cousin right?"

He grinned.

"I suppose so. What name are you using?"

He was surprised to see Axel flush pink.

"Sophia Lauder."

He started.

"Lauder," he repeated. "That's my mother's maiden name."

"I know that fine," she told him with a smile. "Did ye think that I just make-up my alias' on the spot? I tend tae pick them from people I've known or things I've seen or read. So we could definitely pass as cousins."

Steve shook his head in disbelief. She had obviously been thinking about him when she had chosen that surname to go in under cover with Richard Arlington. He had thought about her over the past two years as well. He had even dreamed about her on the odd occasion.

"So you did miss me then?" he said with a smile.

Axel rolled her eyes but then pitched herself forward to wrap her arms around his neck. The intensity of the hug shocked him slightly as she gripped her tightly to her. He supposed that the woman who was completely self-reliant and never made attachments had formed some kind of link to him through their messed up relationship of five years. He wrapped his own arms around her back and held her close to him. She smelled very clean but the scent of her skin penetrated his senses reminding him of nights gone past. He remembered that smell.

"It's nice to see you again," he told her whispering into her hair.

"It's good to see ye too, Steve."

* * *

><p><em>Well that's the third chapter. I'm going to start the fourth chapter like right now because I'm currently in the middle of a Hawaii Five-0 omnibus. Watching episode 17 with the bit where Steve blow opens the pawn shop door with a grenade. Excellent. Anyway, I hope you liked that chapter and as usual I can't wait to hear what you think.<em>


	4. I Hate to Turn Up Out of the Blue

_Well, here is the fourth chapter. It's another long one. I hope you enjoy it._

_Translation time =)_

_Hawd yer Wheesht - Shut the Hell Up or (more politely) Hold your Tongue  
>Baws - Balls<em>

* * *

><p><strong>I hate to turn up out of the blue uninvited<br>**but I couldn't stay away, I couldn't fight  
>I hoped you'd see my face and that you'd be reminded<br>that for me, it isn't over  
><em>- Someone Like You, Adele<em>

**.**

Steve woke in the morning to a huge thump coming from somewhere down the stairs. He immediately grabbed his gun out from under his pillow and rolled out the bed, his feet landing quietly on the floor. He was out the door of his bedroom and heading down the stairs in a flash, his eyes blinking in the sudden light coming in through the windows. When he reached the bottom of the stairs an odd sight met his eyes. In the middle of his living room stood Axel still dressed in his white shirt. She was glaring down fiercely at her unsuspecting victim on the floor with a Sig Sauer braced in both hands. Steve wondered briefly where she had been keeping that. He immediately recognised Lieutenant Catherine Rollins, who he had been dating for the past little bit, lying on the floor breathing heavily, indicating that Axel had tossed her onto the floor, knocking the breath out of her.

"What the fuck are you doing?" he asked the British agent as he lowered his gun and moved into the living room towards Catherine lying on the floor.

"I was in the kitchen having a drink when I heard someone come in the front door," Axel explained not removing her eyes from Catherine. "They were creeping around like they didn't want tae be heard so I came in and dealt with them."

"I was going to surprise you, Steve," Catherine told him as he knelt down on the floor next to her, "but she got the drop on me."

Steve could see the accusation in her eyes. He knew exactly what it looked like but he didn't bother to explain right at this moment.

"Are you alright?" he asked Catherine. "Did she hurt you at all?"

Catherine shook her head and Steve looked up into the barrel of Axel's gun.

"You can put that away," he told her. "Catherine's a friend."

Axel shrugged one shoulder but then duly lowered her arm and relaxed her threatening stance over Catherine. Steve helped Catherine off the floor and then made her sit down on the couch. He was only briefly aware that it didn't look like anyone had slept on it.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Steve asked Catherine again. Axel was lethal after all.

"I'm fine," Catherine told him sincerely sounding like she had now recovered her breath. "I just didn't expect to be thrown around your living room before having a gun thrust in my face."

Steve could hear the question in her voice.

"Actually it's probably better if I don't introduce you," he told her before turning to Axel. "What the hell were you thinking? You might have killed her."

Axel smirked, her eyes flickering to Catherine and then back.

"I would have if she had moved," she responded nonchalantly, "but she didn't and she's still alive. People shouldn't sneak around other people's house, especially early in the morning."

"I was trying to surprise him," Catherine told her through gritted teeth.

Axel snorted.

"Steve sleeps light enough that no matter how quiet ye were ye'd have likely found yerself with his gun in yer face rather than mine," she said bluntly, "though I am surprised it took ye so long tae get down the stairs. Ye used to be quicker."

Steve was saved from answering by the ringing of a phone. Axel immediately turned towards the sound which was coming from a small black phone sitting on the coffee table. She picked it up and glanced briefly at the caller id. Steve saw recognition flicker in her eyes.

"I need tae take this," she told them before she turned on her heel and left in the direction of Steve's office. When she had closed the door behind her Steve looked back at Catherine.

"I'm sorry about that," he told her.

"Steve, I think you'd better tell me who that woman is and why she is wandering around your house in your shirt with a gun," Catherine said in the sternest voice Steve had ever heard her use. He sighed heavily. Trust Catherine to be on dry land at the same time Axel decided to put in an appearance.

"She's an old friend," he explained hesitantly. "She's in the area on business and she slept on the couch last night."

Catherine's eyes narrowed when she looked at him. He could see the doubt in them. There was nothing that he could explain and that was killing him. Axel's identity had to be protected and whilst Steve trusted that Catherine would never tell anyone anything it wasn't really up to him to tell her or not. That was entirely up to Axel. It was rare that she ever told anyone her real name so having her open up to his team was a huge deal.

"Why is she wearing your shirt then and how does she know how you sleep?" she fired the questions at him. "You still haven't told me who she is."

Steve sighed.

"I can't tell you who she is," Steve told her. "All I can tell you is that she's an old friend, she borrowed my shirt to sleep in and we used to work together."

He knew his explanation wouldn't pacify Catherine but he didn't expect her to get to her feet and storm off in the direction of his office where Axel was taking her phone call.

"If you won't tell me anything then I'll ask her," she said and Steve tried to stop her from opening the door but he didn't quite reach her in time. Axel spun round as they entered the room and her eyes flickered across them quickly. Catherine opened her eyes to speak but Axel made a swift, brutal sign indicating that she should be quiet or else have her throat slit.

"I have tae go now," she said into her phone. "Bye darling."

"Was that him?" Steve asked the moment she had hung up. Axel blinked slowly but didn't answer him. Instead she looked at Catherine.

"I believe ye had something tae say."

"Yes, in fact, I do, who the fuck are you and what are you doing in my boyfriend's house?" Catherine demanded in a very superior tone than sounded like it could have belonged to a field hospital matron.

"Yer boyfriend?" Axel repeated, her eyes flickering to Steve for a moment. "Will that make ye Lieutenant Rollins then?"

"Yes it would."

"Well, I could tell ye who I am," she said, "but I'd have tae silence ye afterward."

Steve felt like he was in the middle of a bad sit-com when that signature smirk appeared on Axel's face. What the hell was he supposed to do in a situation like this? Where the hell was Danny? He could really use the back up right now.

"I'm an intelligence officer in the United States Navy," Catherine began stiffly but Axel interrupted her.

"Ye could be the President of the United States and I still wouldn't tell ye. My relationship with Commander McGarrett is none of yer concern and neither is the reason I am here. Ye can ask me until yer blue in the face but ye'll no get an answer out of me so I suggest that ye save yer breath for questions that I might answer."

Catherine seemed stumped and was just staring at Axel in disbelief. Steve wished he didn't have to be there right now. If there was ever a situation that he had thought would never, ever happen it was that Axel and Catherine would never be in the same room as each other.

"Well I'm flattered, Steve," Axel said turning to him, "she does favour me some."

With that she swept past them and Steve could hear her going out of the back door, probably for a swim.

"Just what did she mean by that?" Catherine asked him and all he wanted at that moment was to go back to sleep to wake up and find it had all just been a bad dream. Now that he had seen them together he had to admit Axel had something there. They were about the same height with dark hair although Catherine's eyes were brown and she was infinitely more tanned than Axel. He hadn't really noticed before but at that moment it seemed he had a type.

"She meant that you are with me because I look like her," Catherine answered her own question. "Who is she, Steve? Your ex-girlfriend? Your ex-wife? Who? You had better tell me now or else I'm going to walk out that door and you're never going to see me again."

"I'm not with you because you look like her," Steve protested immediately. "I've never been married, you know that. She's just an old friend from a couple of years ago."

"You seem to have been closer than friends."

"If you want me to admit it then, yes, I've slept with her," he told her, "more than once but that was years ago. She lives on the other side of the Pacific, for fuck's sake."

Catherine's mouth suddenly dropped open and Steve could see the ghost of a memory in her eyes followed by confusion and anger. She seemed almost shocked by whatever she was remembering and Steve could feel the apprehension building within him.

"It was her," she said softly.

"What was her?" Steve asked her confused.

"That first night you took me for dinner when we met in Coronado," she said, "and we never made our reservations, the next morning you got a text message. It was under the name Bond. All it said was San Diego. When you got that message you were in such a hurry to have a shower and get dressed. It was her you were going to, wasn't it?"

Steve didn't answer. He remembered that day, leaving Catherine's bed and heading to San Diego to see Axel after a four month absence. She would tell him what she was doing there but he suspected she was in the middle of an operation at the time because they had only a couple of hours together which they had spent sitting in a park underneath a tree, not talking and just watching the world go by. They had spoken about the girl's bed he had just left that morning even though it was just briefly. They had agreed that their intermittent relationship shouldn't stop them from seeing other people when they were apart, especially since Axel used her position as a woman in her job so often.

"Did you go straight from my bed into hers?" Catherine asked in an almost dangerously soft voice. Her fury seemed to have died down now but Steve could still see it in her eyes dancing a twisted dance with hurt. What the hell was he supposed to tell her? He couldn't exactly say that at the particular point she had just been a one night stand and she hadn't meant anything to him, which was the truth but Steve didn't want to tell her that.

"Cathy," he said gently reach for her, "it was over before we had even really started."

She flinched away from him, reluctant to have him touch her.

"That's a bad excuse, Steve and you know it. You slept with me and then went straight to her. How do you think she'd feel about that?"

She waited for an answer and Steve knew what it was but he didn't want to say it.

"I told her," he admitted quietly, "and she didn't care."

Catherine looked at him in disbelief and it loosened his tongue rather suddenly.

"You can't understand, Cath, you weren't there. We weren't a couple. We spent months apart, lived completely separate lives. We didn't do dinner or drinks or the movies, we didn't introduce each to friends or family. It wasn't the kind of relationship you're thinking it is, neither of us had the time for permanent things in our lives, we weren't stable enough, either of us. We had very little time. Sometimes we didn't even really talk much, and I don't mean that all we did was fuck but we could sit together in silence for hours at a time. It wasn't a proper relationship."

Catherine's face seemed to change drastically through his rant from shock to anger to comprehension and finally to resignation. Steve wasn't sure what the resignation meant, whether she had accept his explanation or was determined not to accept that she was hearing the truth.

"What was it then, Steve?" she asked him in a surprisingly soft voice. "That girl, what was she to you?"

Steve heaved a sigh.

"It was just ... It was just simple," he told her. "Everything else was so hectic, five years of tracking the Hesse brothers, and that girl, she was my little bit of peace and quiet."

The look in Catherin's brown eyes as she stepped towards him was something he couldn't describe. She raised her hand and for a moment he though she was going to slap him but she didn't. Instead she rested her warm palm against his cheek. She seemed to be searching his eyes but what she was looking for he couldn't tell.

"I could never compete with that," she told him before standing on her tip toes to plant a lingering kiss on his cheek. "Come and find me when she's gone."

"Cathy," he attempted to persuade her but she shook her head and he knew it was in vain.

"Goodbye Steve."

She gave him a smile and then turned and left the house swiftly. Steve sighed as the front banged shut behind her retreating back. Right at that moment it felt that if it wasn't for back luck he'd have no luck at all but when he thought it he couldn't help remembering that it was one of Axel's sayings.

Exasperated he left his office to go into the kitchen. Danny was awake and fully dressed leaning on the kitchen side finishing off a bacon and egg sandwich. Axel was sitting on the counter opposite his partner watching him in obviously delighted by the enjoyment plain on his face. Beside her on the counter was a plate which held two more of the bacon and egg sandwiches. His partner and the British agent both looked up when the door clicked shut behind him.

"Where did they come from?" Steve asked nodding at the sandwiches.

"Axel made them," Danny told him through a mouth of bacon, egg and bread. "They're damn good. You don't seem like the cooking sort of woman."

Axel laughed.

"I was in the Army," she told Danny. "All military personnel know how tae cook."

Steve glowered at her, annoyed about her good humour. He was also annoyed at Danny because he would have really liked him to still hate Axel at this moment especially when he was pissed off at her himself. He didn't understand why she had to say that in front of Catherine. He knew it wasn't just a spur of the moment thing. Axel had an extremely effective filter between her brain and her mouth. Everything she said was carefully thought about before it was said, an excellent tool for a spy.

"Where's the Lieutenant?" asked Danny once he had finally swallowed the rest of his breakfast.

"She's gone," Steve said through gritted teeth, shooting a glare at Axel.

"Why?" she asked. "I liked her, Steve. She'd be a good one for ye tae settle down with."

Steve couldn't help but just stare at her. Axel bloody confused him royally.

"What the hell do you mean by that?" he demanded. "If you liked her so bloody much then why did you talk down to her like that and then imply that the only reason I like the woman is because she looks a bit like you?"

"Calm down, McGarrett," she told him. "Even if I like someone it doesn't mean that I'm going tae let them demand information from me in a condescending way. I'm a bloody grown woman, no some sixteen year old teenager who's nicked her sister's boyfriend. If ye had been smart ye'd have told her I was yer cousin and there wouldn't have been a problem but ye didn't so I dropped the hint and left ye to deal with it. Trust me, it's better she knows."

Steve felt like he was about to tear out his hair. Is this how Danny felt around him because right now he could completely sympathise with his partner?

"I think he's pissed at you," Danny commented to Axel, "makes a change from me being pissed at him."

Axel looked at him and then shrugged.

"He's no pissed at me," she told his partner. "He's just mad because I'm right, again."

Steve wanted to argue that point but he couldn't because it was mostly true. He felt like an idiot for not thinking to tell Catherine that Axel was his cousin and he certainly knew that she had the right to know that there had been some history between him and Axel. Still, he could have got round to that in his own time.

"Axel, that was the girl from Coronado," he explained. "She just figured out that I left her that morning because I was rushing across the state to you."

Axel shrugged.

"It's no big deal," she told him. "It was yer first date. It's not like ye even knew her, really."

"Most women don't see it that way actually," Danny interjected.

Axel dismissed it with a wave of her hand and for some reason, just when he wanted to be mad at her, Steve had to smile. It had always been one of the many things he had admired about her. She just didn't give a fuck what other people thought and she just dismissed anything that didn't sit the same way with her. She didn't care what way most women saw it as far as Axel was concern they were just being stupid and making a fuss over nothing.

"Is one of those for me?" Steve asked deciding that he had had enough of this subject and he pointed at the plate next to Axel.

"Aye, they both are," she said handing the plate to him. "My special bacon and egg butties. Danny's had two already."

"Oh, it's Danny now, not Detective Williams," Steve commented looking between his partner and Axel. "Are you not eating?"

"I had breakfast like three hours ago," Axel told him. "It's eight o'clock. Ye sleep a lot later than ye used tae. I'll say something about Arlington, he sleeps late and it kills me having tae lay there waiting for him tae wake up. Half the time I get up, go for a swim, have my breakfast, make all my phone calls and then get back intae bed before he wakes up. The man sleeps like a log, a bit like ye when ye're drunk, Steve."

Steve had forgotten that Axel seemed to require next to no sleep. By the time they had gone to bed last night it must have been about half one in the morning but she had gotten up three and a half hours later. He also really didn't want to hear about Arlington's sleeping habits because that brought it to the fore front of his mind that Axel was sleeping with the slimy, arms-dealing bastard and he certainly hated being compared to him.

"Axel, you've seen me in a drunken sleep once," he contradicted between bites of his sandwich, "I hardly think that makes you an expert."

"Steve, I managed tae climb in through the window of yer hotel room, on the eighth floor might I add, without ye hearing a thing, even when I landed with a right wallop. If ye hadn't of been in a drunken sleep ye'd have been awake well before I'd managed tae even get tae floor three."

"Why were you climbing in through his window in the first place?" Danny asked puzzled. "Do you and Super SEAL just do that kind of thing for fun?"

Axel and Steve exchanged a glance and then laughed.

"Aye," Axel told him at the same time Steve said, "yes."

"You know I'm thinking that I might ask Chin to knock me out for this entire operation," Danny told them. "I have enough problems just dealing with one, let alone two people whose entire lives seem to revolve around armed conflict. I might have a mental break down."

"Pfft," said Axel dismissively, "ye'll barely be seeing me, Danny. I'll be stuck playing Barbie to Arlington."

"Ignore her," Steve told Danny, "she loves going undercover."

"That I do," she admitted. "Nothing like bringing down the bad guys without them even knowing it was me. All they think I'm good for is lying on my back."

"How do you do that?" Danny asked. "How do you sleep with people like Arlington and Victor Hesse? I couldn't do it."

"Oh it's easy, Danny," Axel said with a wide smile, "I just lie back and think of England."

Steve laughed but even as he did so his fists clenched. He hated being reminded that Axel had slept with Victor Hesse, the man who had killed his father, John McGarrett. It had been before he had even met her but it still rankled him. She hadn't told him about it at all and he'd only found out when he'd been sent after the Hesse brothers and Axel was the one that had been recommended to try and lure Victor Hesse in. It was over comms he had heard their conversation and the way Victor was flirting with her. He hadn't even realised that whilst Axel had been undercover as an arms dealer she had slept with Victor in order to get closer to him. He had thought it a bit extreme at the time but he soon got used the way Axel did things even if it did make him want to blow the mission by ripping the arsehole's throat out.

"I should have slit Victor's throat whilst he was sleeping, eh?" Axel said gently obviously following his train of thought.

"That wasn't your job," Steve reminded her, "and you always get the job done."

"Still, it would have saved a lot of hassle if I had just killed him all those years ago."

"Why were you sleeping with him?" asked Danny curiously.

"I like ye, Danny," Axel said with barely a moment's hesitation, "but I'm no going to tell ye anything. Ye know enough as it is for me tae have probable cause tae slit yer throat and dump yer body in the ocean, no that I'd do that."

She grinned broadly at the Jersey Detective who looked as though he was trying to force a golf ball past his adam's apple. Steve just shook his head, not bothering to responded as he finished his breakfast. He'd forgotten how good Axel's bacon and egg butties were.

"I'll be going tae see him," Axel announced suddenly.

"Going to see who?" Steve asked suspiciously.

"Victor Hesse."

"What?" expostulated Danny. "Why?"

"Well with Victor in jail," Axel explained ignoring the way Steve was staring at her, "his contacts and clients are up for takeover by various associates. Arlington will want at least a few of them."

"But Victor knows you," Steve protested. "Surely he's going to be suspicious if you turn up under a different name.

"Aye Victor knows me but as a translator, negotiator and deal broker in the crime world," Axel told him. "The first time I met him my name was Laura McKaren and the second time I gave the name Emma Alexander. Criminals use fake names as well as spies. Victor doesn't know whether either of the names I gave him are my real name but he's no going tae care. Arlington was smart enough tae send me tae deal with Viktor Bout when we were in New York. No one ever suspicious about a woman visiting a man in jail but a suspected arms dealer visiting another suspected arms dealer is no a good move. He'll send me tae see Victor."

"I think that is a bad idea," Steve said. "Victor is in maximum security, all his visitations are recorded. If you're trying to avoid notice by the HPD then I wouldn't be visiting him."

"They don't record his conjugal visits," Axel said with a smile, "although I must say I think the idea of conjugal visits is crazy. In Britain if you're in jail ye just have to suck it up."

"A conjugal visit, Axel, are you serious?" Steve practically shouted at the Scot. "Was the bastard that good in bed that you just can't wait to go back?"

"Aw hawd yer wheesht, Steve," Axel replied irritably. "I'll no actually be fucking him. I'm only going along tae get information and conjugal visits are the only visitations that maximum security prisoners have that aren't recorded as ye say. Anyway, what with Lieutenant Rollins it's no like ye care really who I happen tae be sleeping with."

Sometimes Steve really wanted to strangle her.

"Axel, he murdered my father," he reminded her.

"Aye," she acknowledged, "and for that ye should have chopped off his baws, wrapped them round his throat and hung him from the nearest tree. As it is he's still alive and I'm in the middle of a job so I'll do whatever I can tae get it done. It's a dirty job but someone's got tae do it."

Steve knew there was no point in arguing but it felt like his heart was beating at a rate of noughts when he thought about Axel willingly going to a conjugal visit with Victor Hesse. He should have killed the bastard. He really wished he had.

"Right, well now ye've both eaten," said Axel slipped off the kitchen counter, "let me go and put some clothes on and then we can get everything sorted before I have tae go back tae Arlington."

She left the kitchen and Steve watched her go, still wearing his shirt and from the back he could just catch a glimpse of her bum where the shirt had ridden up from sitting. When he looked back at his partner Danny was watching him with an indescribable expression that immediately put Steve on the defensive.

"What?" he asked.

"Are you sure you're going to be able to handle this?" Danny asked him seriously.

"Of course. Why wouldn't I?"

Danny looked doubtful.

"You're going to have to put up with looking at and maybe hearing Axel and Arlington together," he explained patiently, "and with the way you're acting I wouldn't be surprised if you did something stupid."

"I've worked with Axel before, Danny," he said in a cool tone.

Danny held up his hand as though in surrender.

"Okay, Steve," he said and whatever else he was about to say was interrupted by a knock on the front door followed by it opening and Kono's voice shouting out,

"Boss, you in?"

"In the kitchen, Kono," Steve called back before he looked at Danny quickly. "Not a word."

Danny folded his arms and rolled his eyes clearly indicating to Steve that he thought he was an idiot for even suggesting that Danny was going to say anything about last nights and this morning's events.

"Hey Boss, Danny," Kono said coming into the kitchen with Chin.

"Hey you two," Steve greeted them warmly. "Good idea to come here instead of going the HQ."

"What have you got?" Danny asked them noticing the file in Kono's hand.

"Well, Kono decided to do a rundown of Arlington's more recent associates in case it turned up anything fruitful about how the two nuclear scientists got involved," Chin explained and both Danny and Steve were immediately engrossed.

"I came up with two," Kono continued. "First I've got an American, a William Rose. He owns several testing laboratories and actually develops weapons for our Armed Forces but apparently he has met with Arlington several times in the last year. The FBI are keeping an eye on him. Our next candidate is like a ghost. I contacted the CIA two days ago when her file was blocked and I finally got something back this morning. Her name is Sophia Lauder, she seems to be some internationally known translator but not only that she sets up meetings with respective clients or dealers but her file is like practically empty. Nobody had even heard of her until earlier this year."

"That'll be because it's Axel," Steve explained with a frown. "I'll ask her and see if it was her that set up the meeting between Arlington and the scientists."

"I set him up with David Harrington but no the other one. That was Rose."

The Five-0 team swung round to see Axel standing behind them. She was now fully dressed in a pair of black linen trousers and a cream blouse. Steve didn't think he'd ever seen her look so casually elegant before. She normally favoured cargo pants and a vest top although that wasn't to say that she didn't clean up well. He had been surprised a couple of times by how lady-like Axel could seem when dressed up to the nines in silks, satins, heels and diamonds or pearls.

"And you said you were just there to warm his bed," said Danny with a smile.

"I never said that was the only thing I did," laughed Axel, "but I certainly don't file his paperwork."

* * *

><p><em>Well there we have it. Chapter Four. As usual I'm dying to hear what you think.<em>


	5. Sells Love to Another Man

_**WARNING: **__Scenes of a Sexual Nature_

_I actually don't think I need to do any translation for this chapter.  
>P.S. This is a long one ;) I hope you enjoy it.<em>

* * *

><p><strong>Sells love to another man<br>**and it's too cold outside  
>for angels to fly<br>an angel will die  
>covered in white<br>_- The A Team, Ed Sheeran_

**.**

Letting Axel go back to Richard Arlington that evening was difficult, something Steve was never, ever going to admit to anybody. He had managed to look calm and relaxed when she left. He had given her a brief hug and told her to be careful in a whisper that he thought no one else heard. For some reason it was harder this time than it had been before and he couldn't really understand why. Maybe it was because she was certain that Arlington was going to send her to see Victor Hesse in jail or maybe it was because it had been over two years since he had seen her last and he really didn't want her to go so soon. He wouldn't admit that either, not even to himself.

Danny and Chin had tried to set her up with audio and surveillance which Axel had refused and then set up their centre, programming in her transmitting frequency so they could see and hear through her own devices. Steve had to admit that her equipment was far superior to their own, an audio piece hidden in an earring, a camera in a necklace, a tracking device hidden in the heel of her shoe and knife hidden in the other one. Steve had seen it all before but it still hit him suddenly to realise exactly what she was.

It had been agreed that they had to continue running their investigation as normal or else Arlington would become suspicious at the sudden halt of their enquires so they ran shifts between surveillance and investigating. They didn't have much to go on with the investigation, just a couple of leads to follow up so it wasn't that hard to juggle both. Axel had refused to let them listen in on the conversation between Arlington and the Frenchman Louis Bardot. Anything that was said at that meeting she could tell them for herself.

The first few days of surveillance were quite boring, the way many long term surveillance's were. Steve found himself involuntarily clenching his fists every time Arlington so much as touched Axel and he knew that Danny had certainly observed him doing. He really needed to get a grip.

"Anything changed?" Danny asked as he came back into the surveillance suite returning from his bathroom break. Steve turned to look at him.

"Not really," Steve replied. "She's out of the shower now, at least."

Axel had disappeared into the bathroom about half an hour before leaving her necklace on the bedroom side along with her earrings. Steve and Danny had been staring at the door and listening to the sound of the water running. Steve had doubts that Axel was even in the shower. He had suspicions that she was making phone calls where they couldn't see or hear her. The sound of shower had stopped whilst Danny had been in the bathroom but Axel was yet to come out.

"What the hell is she doing in there?" asked Danny as he took his seat next to Steve.

"I don't know, Danny," he said, "shaving her legs?"

Danny rolled his eyes not bothering to respond to Steve's snap.

"Oh, here we go," he said as he noticed the door to the bathroom begin to open. Steve looked around at the screen just as Axel came into view. She looked beautiful, dressed in a pair of white linen trousers with a black top with jewelled decoration around the top edge which clung round her breasts in a rather flattering way. Her black hair was twisted up in an elegant knot at the back of her head showing off the pale skin of her neck. She walked towards the camera and there were a few moments of distortion as she put the necklace on and then put her earrings in. Steve had to hand it to her Axel didn't once acknowledge that they were watching.

Axel left her room. Steve had been pleased she didn't share a room with Arlington until he discovered he was in the room next door and they had adjoining doors. Axel never slept in her room and it seemed to have been provided simply so she could have somewhere to get ready. Danny secretly thought it was lucky that so far Axel had been getting into Arlington's bed by herself as the man himself seemed to work well into the night. Danny didn't want to be around when Arlington decided to go to bed with Axel. He wasn't sure if Steve would be able to contain himself.

They watched the images of corridors until Axel arrived at her destination, the veranda. A table for two was all set up and Richard Arlington was sitting at the opposite side of the table from where Axel entered. He rose when he saw her and moved forward to kiss her. By his thigh Steve felt his fist clench at this intimate action. He forced it to relax as he glanced at his partner to see if he had noticed but Danny was staring determinedly at the screen.

"I feel that I have been neglecting you dreadfully," Richard said to her softly as he pulled out her chair in a gentlemanly way to allow her to take a seat.

"Smooth bastard," grumbled Steve under his breath and was glad when Danny ignored him.

"Did you speak to John today? How is he?" Arlington asked Axel as he slid into the chair opposite her. Steve's ears immediately picked up on this and his eyes zeroed in on the way that Arlington was looking at Axel.

"Run for all known associates by the name of John," Steve told Danny who immediately turned to the computer beside him.

"He's doing alright," Axel responded in a dismissive tone.

"I have been thinking of flying him out," Arlington told her with a look of consideration.

"At a time like this?" she replied quietly helping herself to the glass of white wine set before her on the table. Arlington gave her a rueful smile.

"I suppose you're right, maybe once my business is settled."

Steve turned to Danny, happy that the conversation was suitably boring so that his attention could be elsewhere.

"What've you found?" he asked.

"Right, I've found a couple of candidates," Danny informed him. "We have a John Loughborough who seems to be some sort of chemical weapons specialist. He has been off the radar for the last year though. There is a Johnathon Park, who just got out of jail for a driving offence, although he is suspected of being a courier for major arms dealers, including Arlington. He was at his parole meeting in Queens yesterday. Juan Da Cova, also known as John Da Cova, is the right arm of Malika Pereira. The FBI think he's in France at the moment. The most likely candidate is John Redmond. His mother, Victoria, is Arlington's older sister. He's nineteen with a juvenile record as long as my arm but it seems he's been keeping his nose clean for the last three years. The Brits are keeping an eye on him due to suspicions that he's now working for his Uncle. Good looking bloke, eh?"

Danny turned the laptop towards Steve who glanced at it over Danny's shoulder. On the screen was a picture of a young man with shaved blond hair and an uncanny resemblance to a rat. He was thin with bloodshot eyes and a grey pallor. He looked half starved.

"Is there a more recent picture?" Steve asked him when he realised that the photo of John Redmond was, in fact, three years old.

"Doesn't look like it," Danny told him. "He seems to have gone underground since he hit sixteen, although if Uncle Ritchie did take him under his wing then that's no surprise."

"Victor Hesse," the name came loud and clear over the audio transmitter in Arlington's public school boy accent drawing both Steve and Danny's attention back to the screens. The couple were now eating some sort of pasta concoction.

"What about him?" Axel was saying taking a sip of her wine.

"Well, you handled the matter with Bout so delicately," Arlington expanded, "that I was hoping to send you to deal with Victor Hesse."

"What do ye need from him?" Axel asked him. "Victor Hesse is no an easy man tae manipulate or persuade. If it had been Anton it would have been easier."

"Ah, so you know the Hesse brothers," Arlington exclaimed in surprise.

"I have met them before," Axel conceded.

"I have not," Arlington admitted. "What did you think of him, of Victor?"

Steve clenched his jaw tightly to stop his teeth from grinding when Axel answered the question.

"He's very thorough," she explained, "and unyielding. He's no good at following orders but if he decides it's worth his time then he is extremely efficient. He's cold blooded but a charmer, tae him the ends always justify the means and nothing tends tae stand in his way."

"Until he murdered Commander Steve McGarrett's father it seems," Arlington said with a smile, "but that does not matter at present. Commander McGarrett will be dealt with in due course. Will you speak with Victor on my behalf?"

Steve's mouth tightened when Arlington mentioned his father's murder. He was curious about how Arlington was going to deal with him and exactly what he meant by it. It could just be an empty threat or maybe that Arlington was going to orchestrate some way of throwing him off the scent.

"It won't be as easy as it was with Bout," Axel warned him when she had swallowed her mouthful of pasta. "Victor's stubborn."

"I'm sure you are capable of persuading him," Arlington told her. "Anyway, it won't be the same as it was with Bout. I want an exchange of information with Victor. You will deliver information to Victor for me and bring back the information I want from him."

"Sounds simple enough," Axel said. "What information?"

"I'll give you the information before you go," he said. "Will tomorrow suit?"

"It will suit me fine," Axel said. "Are ye pulling strings this time?"

"I don't have the contacts down here for that," he responded evenly staring determinedly at his glass of wine. "You'll have to go for a conjugal visit to avoid being recorded. You still need to avoid the cameras in the corridors."

Axel took another sip of her wine.

"Do ye want me tae sleep with him?"

Steve nearly jumped out of his chair but just about managed not to. He did however jerk obviously drawing Danny's attention. Steve ignored his partner's accusing look and instead focused heavily on the screen at Arlington's reaction. He hadn't freaked out over Axel's suggestion. In fact, it looked like he was observing her with calculated intrigue, as though wondering whether it would serve his purposes to have Axel sleep with Victor Hesse. Steve felt like he might blow a blood vessel and from the way he could see Danny watching him out of the corner of his eye it must have looked like he was about too as well.

"You know, Sophia, I think I underestimate how practical you are sometimes," Arlington said. "It's almost as though I forget how long you have been in this game."

There was pregnant pause and Steve's fists were clenched down by his sides sweating as he waited.

"I would prefer it if you didn't," Arlington answered the question eventually, "but it if comes to that, to make the deal, then do what you think you must."

"That fucking bastard," yelled Steve leaping out of his seat as the camera jerked around slightly with the inclination of Axel's head as she gave her assent. Danny looked round at his now irate partner and sighed.

"Maybe Chin, Kono and I should all take it in turns to watch the surveillance and you should just focus on the case," he suggested. "You're going to be a nightmare if he does more than kisses her."

Steve glowered at him.

"He is talking about sending her to sleep with my father's murderer and I'm supposed to be happy about it?"

"I never said that, Steven, but you have to relax. Axel has a job to do and so have we, you jumping around every two seconds is not only distracting, it's downright irritating."

Steve didn't appear to be listening. He was staring at the screen in front of him. Axel was looking at herself in the bathroom mirror. As usual she didn't acknowledge them but instead checked her hair and then her make-up. Danny rolled his eyes as he watched his partner stare at her, following every little movement she made. He had never seen Steve act like this before, never. It was rather disturbing. Whatever had happened between Steve and the British Agent it had developed into more than just colleagues with benefits. Something tenuous linked them, something that Steve refused to acknowledge and Danny couldn't help but wonder why they hadn't seen each other for over two years.

Axel was on her way back to the table and Steve stared at the screen as Arlington came into view looking smugly pleased but he has no idea why. He caught a glimpse of security personnel on the balcony above the veranda and he wondered briefly how heavy Arlington's security might be. He made a snap decision although he knew that there really had been no other thought in his head.

"I'm going in there," he told Danny and then dived out of the surveillance suite and into his office to prepare, giving Danny no chance to object to this latest harebrained scheme.

"You are going where?" Danny asked as he followed him into his office. Steve doesn't look up at his partner as he rummaged through the drawers of his desk, all too aware of the expression that Danny was currently wearing.

"I'm going into Arlington's," he confirmed. "I need to speak to Axel."

"You. Are. Insane," Danny told him after a moment of simply staring at him. "Have you lost your mind? Seriously, you want to risk breaking into Arlington's mansion and exposing Axel just so you can talk to her? I knew you two were obviously fucked up with the whole climbing in your eight storey window but I didn't anticipate that you were this crazy."

"Look," Steve firmly interrupted his rant, "I need to speak to her about the arrangements for tomorrow. If I don't go in now then we won't have any opportunity to discuss the information being exchanged between Arlington and Victor."

"So this has nothing to do with her possibly having to fuck the man?" Danny questioned one eyebrow raised in premature disbelief.

Steve looked up from where he had been securing his bulletproof vest and shook his head.

"No."

Danny was not inclined to take that as a truthful answer.

"Really?" he exclaimed, "because it seemed to me like Arlington suggesting that she should sleep with Victor Hesse if it would secure the deal and your decision to pop in for a chat coincided quite nicely there. What the hell are you going to do if Arlington decides to take her to bed tonight so he can show her exactly which side of her bread the butter is on?"

The amused look on Steve's face was not what Danny had been expecting at all there.

"I'll have comms on, Danny," he told him as he moved towards him, "you let me know what's going on."

With that he left rather abruptly leaving Danny staring after him and wondering what the hell to do now.

**.**

The waves broke on the sand directly below him but Steve didn't look down. He continued to focus on the rocky cliff face up which he was climbing. He had only slipped once so far and had then pressed himself into the rock as a cascade of smaller stones, hailed down possibly alerting any security who might have been patrolling the cliffs. He had started climbing again after a few moments, gripping the grooves in the rock face with chalked fingertips. It wasn't much longer until he reached the top.

He scanned over the edge of the cliff into the garden area of the house. There was one armed guard who was yawning widely to one side about ten metres away from him. When he turned to look the other way Steve rolled up onto the flat grass and leopard crawled into a nearby bush which happily provided cover when the guard looked back his way.

"What's happening, Steve?" said Danny's voice in his ear.

Steve didn't reply at once, preferring to wait until he was well out of earshot of the guard. Staying close to the ground he ran for the short wall that cut off Arlington's garden from the cliff face. A quick scan of the grounds told him there were two guards at the far end, near the house, before he took a flying leap over the wall and landed softly on his feet behind a convenient rose bush. It was only then that he thought to reply to his partner.

"I'm in a rose bush, Danno," he whispered quietly. "Where's Axel?"

"Axel," Danny sounded rather unsure as he said her name, "is in bed, with Arlington. I admit that I am extremely glad that you were not here to witness that. In fact, I was barely here to witness it."

Steve growled a low throaty sound.

"I am not even going to ask," Danny said obviously hearing the growl.

"Don't."

He peered out from behind the bush to get eyes on the guards. They were standing together to one side, the glow of cigarettes piercing through the darkness. Keeping low Steve ran down the length of the garden using the bushes to shield him from the two guards.

Once he was close enough to the house he settled again behind another bush so as to scan the building for a safe point of entry. He wanted to ask Danny is Axel was still asleep but he could hear the low murmurings of the guards and was certain that they would hear him if he spoke. He returned his focus instead back onto how to get into Arlington's mansion. There were a set of patio doors at the back and Steve could see the balcony but it was too high up for him to get up and he didn't know the walk patterns of the security guards.

In the end he decided the best thing to do would be to look for an open window of some sort but all the windows he could see were shut. Just then as though someone was throwing him a sign the patio door opened to allow another of Arlington's guards out into the garden.

Steve didn't waste his opportunity. As soon as he guard turned to be greeted by the others he was out of his bush and pressing himself into the mansion wall. From there it only took a few steps and he was in the hallway of the mansion, looking left and right for any signs of life as the door closed behind him.

"Danny," he whispered into his mike, "what's happening?"

"Nothing is happening, Steven," his partner replied heatedly. "Axel is asleep, in bed, beside Arlington. You didn't really think this through properly."

"Stop worrying," Steve told his partner as he moved left down the hallway. He was pretty sure that he was heading towards Axel's bedroom but he was mainly going on the few days' worth of surveillance that Axel had provided them with. Axel had said that Arlington slept like a log so he was willing to bet that he could get into the room and get Axel without waking Arlington up.

"Hey Danny," Steve heard Kono's voice in his ear.

"Where's the Boss?" asked Chin.

Steve could hear Danny's exasperated sigh.

"He's in there," he said and Steve could imagine the way Danny was gesticulating wildly at the screens. He heard Kono and Chin's exclamations of horror when they realised exactly what Danny was talking about. He ignored them, talking away in his ear, demanding to know what the hell he was doing in Arlington's house.

Steve turned a corner, listening to his team arguing in his ear and his firearm braced in his hands. He went softly down the corridor, eyes peeled for any of Arlington's security that might be about to put in an appearance. The whole place was quiet, apart from the constant babble in his ear from his team which was making it difficult to concentrate. He didn't understand why his team thought it was such a big issue for him to be trying to talk to Axel.

"Will you lot shut up?" he hissed into his mike when he realised that it would be impossible for him to hear anyone approaching and he's certain he just heard footsteps coming towards him.

All of a sudden he was yanked to the left, into the darkness and his back connected harshly with a wall as one hand clamped his hand holding his firearm and another clapped over his mouth. He got the message that he was to remain quiet when a knee was placed firmly between his legs obviously threatening harsh punishment to his nether regions if he so much as moved. There was a frozen silence for a moment then,

"What the hell are ye doing here, Steve?" Axel's voice came out from the darkness as she let him go and moved back. There were a few seconds as he prized himself away from the wall and he searched for her in the darkness but he was certain she had moved away. Then there was the sound of metal on metal as she yanked back a curtain and the moonlight streamed into the room.

It was some sort of office, with a desk and bookshelves but Steve wasn't paying attention to any of that because Axel was by the window, in a black, lacy negligee with her hair curling over her shoulder and her skin bathed in moonlight. It made him feel a little crazy because she looked like she did that night before he went after Anton, standing in his hotel room, waiting for him even though he hadn't expected her and the memory almost took his breath away.

"Eh, Steve?" Danny's uncertain tone crackled in his ear.

Steve continued to stare at Axel for a moment, his mouth dry before he came back to the present.

"What is it, Danny?" he asked.

"Axel isn't in bed anymore."

He looked at Axel as she moved towards the desk her bare feet making no sound on the floor. He wondered briefly how she knew he had been there or if she had just gotten up to have a stroll.

"Message received," he told his partner before he turned his attention to Axel.

"Yer a gowk, ye ken that?" Axel told him amiably like she was just starting a conversation with an old friend she had run into in a cafe.

"Why is that?" he asked her moving further into the room, closer to her.

"What are ye doing here, Steve?" she repeated her earlier question. "It's no safe for ye tae be here, running around Arlington's house in the middle of the night, with a gun and it's certainly no safe for me tae be here talking tae ye. Are ye trying tae compromise me?"

"Of course not," he responded immediately. "You know me, Axel; I've got into places that are more heavily guarded that this place. Anyway, there was no other opportunity to talk to you about Victor Hesse."

Axel sighed, her eyes rolling.

"Ye have a serious hang up about the man," she told him. "I've told ye the conjugal visit is going tae be purely business and nothing else. If I do sleep with him I'll have damn good reasons for it. I have tae do my job, Steve, same as ye and ye don't see me telling ye how tae do it."

"That's not what this is about," Steve argued back as he stowed his gun away in the holster by his right hip. "I need to talk to you about the information exchange. I see two options, either you let us watch via surveillance or we have a meet for you to give us the information."

Axel was watching him very carefully, with a suspicious look on her face. Steve was surprised to see it. Usually Axel didn't let anyone see was she was thinking. She had an inscrutable mask which she could pull up at any second and hide all her thoughts behind.

"If I take surveillance it won't be my necklace," Axel explained quietly. "I'll take camera three but think about it, Steve; ye can't come charging in if Victor decides that this conjugal visit should be just that. If I have tae close the deal I will and make no mistake about it. If it's what Arlington wants, it's what Arlington gets for the moment and I will complete this mission in full."

Steve sighed. She was right. He didn't want to witness that. The idea of Victor Hesse getting close to anyone he remotely cared about sent chills down his spine. Still, he would rather have eyes in there even if Axel would agree to a meet.

"I'll deal with it," he said stiffly.

"Are ye sure ye wouldn't be happier with a meet?" she asked him.

"You are likely to leave things out if you think it'll stop me doing something reckless," he rationalised. "If Victor wants to make a deal with Arlington on the conditions that Arlington takes out me or members of my team then I want to know about it and that is something you'd be likely to keep from me. You've kept things from me before after all."

Axel's face went blank then and that mask of hers was well and truly in place. Steve remembered all too well that time they had worked together and Axel had been the one bringing him the information but had neglected to inform him that the bastard she was undercover with had been beating her and she had been taking it, for the sake of completing the mission. When the mission was over and Axel had put a bullet between his eyeballs Steve had discovered the mass of bruises that marked her normally flawless skin.

"Ye'd have compromised me if I'd have told ye," she said gently.

"And you always get the job done no matter what," Steve replied. "I know."

He sighed heavily.

"I don't want you to sleep with him anymore than I want to watch it," he told her, "but I suppose that isn't my decision anymore, not that it ever was. I know you Axel, better than maybe anyone else ever has, and you're the type of person that takes everything upon themselves."

"So are ye," she came back at him with a smile.

They were quiet for a moment, standing in silence together with the moonlight shining through the window over them. Steve could do no more than just look at her. She looked so fragile like she had when he had first seen her but he had come to realise that he should never underestimate her. So he hadn't ever and whatever was between them, it sometimes drove him insane, because it made him worry about her, made him want to keep her safe and sometimes it made him want to throttle her even though he knew damn well that she could take care of herself.

"Why didn't you get back in touch?" he asked her suddenly. "After South Korea, why didn't you ever get back in touch?"

Axel just looked at him for a moment.

"Ye'd come home," she said after a moment. "I thought maybe ye'd come home for the funeral and then ye'd be back doing yer job, tracking down Hesse or other terrorists but ye stayed and I thought that maybe ye were ready tae settle down, ready tae be home and I wasn't going tae interfere with that."

"You know I wouldn't have cared."

"Maybe not but this is yer home, Steve," she said, "and here, ye have a chance of a real life with friends and maybe a family. Ye didn't need me messing that up for ye. Anyway, after ye came home, I was rather busy."

"You could have let me know you were coming," he told her with a smile.

"I wasn't going tae disturb yer life, Steve. It's been over two years since we last saw each other and ye've really made yerself a home here, carved out a family and all. It wouldn't have been fair tae suddenly turn up."

He let out a short laugh.

"Have you been keeping an eye on me?" he asked her.

"I might have a couple of contacts keeping me in the loop," she told him with a smile, "or maybe I have a satellite following ye around."

"I wouldn't put it past you."

She smiled at him softly and there was that look in her eyes again, that tenderness that was completely alien with her. He had never expected her to know how to empathise with him when his father was murdered but maybe, without him realising, she had sympathised with him. She couldn't be upset about his father but maybe she could be upset for him because maybe he was the only person she had ever cared for.

"I got to you, didn't I?" he asked her suddenly.

"Pfft, what? No," she denied him after a moments confusion waving her hand in that air of dismissal that she had perfected so well. He didn't believe her though. He moved towards her and reached out grasping her hand to pull her in towards him.

"Look at me and deny it," he said. "I know your file, Axel. You've never been close to anyone in your life. You always kept your distance from your regiment, never been close to anyone at the SIS, never been married or had a partner. You have no family and you live for the job. If you've been keeping an eye on me then I suspect it means I got to you."

"Ye have a high opinion of yerself, McGarrett," Axel told him in a teasing tone as she pressed up against his chest. He could feel the edge of her hips against him and he wanted nothing more than to be rid of his bulletproof vest so he could feel the curve of her breast against his chest.

"What's your real name?" he asked her softly.

"Axelia Adair," she whispered in reply. "Family motto is loyal unto death."

"Well, Adair," he told her, "I do have a high opinion of myself and of you."

He kissed her then, hard enough to bruise her lips, pushing her backwards until she made contact with the desk. Her response was, as it always had been, fierce and the force of her kiss made him grab her roughly around her arse to lift her onto the desk. For all it had been over two years they seemed to still work together in fluid motion as she opened her knees and he moved between them to stand close to her body, feeling the heat from her. His hand found its way around her neck, holding her close to him and his other hand was digging into the soft flesh of her hip. She tasted mildly of wine and mint and the scent of sex was still on her skin. The thought of it made him kiss her even harsher.

"Is this ye stamping yer authority?" she breathed into him when they came up for air, a slight hitch of a gasp in her voice.

"You bet," he gasped back before he kissed her again, pulling her back into him roughly. She matched him for ferocity as though she needed this as much as he did. The hand at her hip was now slipping up her negligee, rucking it up around her waist, fingertips digging into her soft flesh leaving bruises in their wake. It was a moment before he realised that she wasn't wearing anything under her negligee and her hands were busy unzipping his cargo pants. Their movements together were desperate and angry as though determined to mark the other as their own. She bit his lip drawing blood and he had to hold himself back from the playful nips to her neck so that he didn't leave marks.

She gasped against his skin when he entered her, in one swift dominating stroke and she arched herself towards him. He bent to kiss the skin on her chest, which was slick with sweat. He revelled in the small gasps she made with each stroke of his and he could swear the desk was moving underneath her.

"Did you miss me?" he asked her, in a breathless whisper in her ear, listening to her panting in his own and clutching herself to him, her nails digging into the backs of his arms.

"Oh God yes," she gasped her thighs clamped tight around his hips and the heels of her feet bouncing off his arse. She was arched back now, her hands on his shoulders, biting her lip to keep herself as quiet as possible and her eyes closed tightly shut. It occurred to him briefly that getting caught like this by Arlington or his men wouldn't be an ideal situation but he didn't care enough to stop. It felt so good to have her wrapped around him again and he'd forgotten quite how strong the connection between them was.

"Look at me," he growled at her, feeling himself close to climax and knowing from the rise of her hips to meet his that she was close as well. "Adair, look at me."

Axel opened her eyes and blue met grey slate. She focused on him, a gasp coming from between her lips as he slammed into her once again. He held her gaze refusing to let her look away and sure enough her gasps became quicker, higher and the rhythm of her hips became out of sync, erratic as she shuddered against him in pleasurable release.

His own release came quickly afterwards and left him shuddering with her, a small gasp escaping between his teeth. She lay back on the desk and he lay on top of her sharing the weight on his elbows so as not to crush her beneath him.

"I missed you," he whispered as their breathing began to slow down to normality and he kissed her again, softly this time.

"I'd have never guessed," she laughed. "I'll threaten tae sleep with Victor Hesse more often if this is the response tae it."

He stiffened at that.

"I'm sorry," he told her withdrawing from her body to sort himself out.

"Don't apologise," she replied as she sat up and then slid of the desk to pull down her negligee. "Animal instinct."

He had forgotten how blasé she could be. She came up to him then looking up at him, a slight frown on her face.

"I won't tell Lieutenant Rollins if that is what yer worried about," Axel said after a moment of just looking at him. "I'm no here tae disrupt yer life, Steve."

"Axel, that's not what –?" he responded in horror. "Who the hell do you think I am?"

An amused smirk slid onto her face.

"Steve Mc-Bone-Me-Sideways-Garrett," she echoed Danny's sentiment causing Steve to roll his eyes.

"Very funny," he said. "Look, it's not a good time to discuss it, in the middle of a case, but Danny is right. We're fucked up and we need to talk about it, no more skirting around the issue like a couple of horny teenagers who are too ashamed to tell their friends what their up to."

"Okay."

"Don't you even think about taking off on me, Axel," he warned her hearing the uncertain tone of her voice.

"Ye know, ye'd really be better off forgetting me," she said gently. "I have a short life expectancy."

Steve snorted.

"For someone so smart, you're really thick sometimes. It's gotten too far past the point and we need to talk about this."

She nodded.

"No now though," she said.

"No, not now," he confirmed. "I'd better go. Cameras tomorrow, okay?"

She rolled her eyes.

"Aye, fine. Now get out of here."

He nodded and instead of heading for the door he took a step closer to her.

"I did miss you," he told her.

"Aye, well, I missed ye too, gowk."

He gave her a brief kiss and then left her standing in the middle of the office the moonlight gleaming off the sweat on her skin.

**.**

His mind was still full of her as he drove back to HQ. He felt slightly ashamed of himself because he had just taken her in a fit of anger and lust, determined as she had said to stamp his authority on her, to let her know that Victor Hesse and Richard Arlington could never compare to him. It was a fit of male dominance, one he had before but he had had no compunction this time in taking her just shortly after she'd had sex with another man.

He thought over what she had said about him being home and maybe he was ready to settle down. He didn't really know what to make of it. He'd never really seen himself as the settling down type and he'd never seen Axel that way either but then she had always been entirely committed to her job.

He had gotten to her, he was sure of it and that was why she seemed so different now than she was before and that only made her all the more appealing. He had cracked that hard exterior. He couldn't say he didn't feel guilty about Catherine because he did but this thing with Axel, he didn't know how to explain it or even if he could but maybe they'd both forged a bond with each other because they had no one else. Maybe it was because in their hectic worlds they brought that little bit of quiet to each other. Whatever it was, they still needed to talk about it. He couldn't have her disappearing for a couple of years and then turning up again.

He got back to HQ quicker than he expected but he supposed he had just been distracted by thinking about everything with Axel. He walked back in to find Danny, Kono and Chin all waiting for him, gathered around the hi-tech table with looks of amusement and exasperation gathered on their faces.

"So," said Danny, "you certainly know how to stamp your authority then?"

The three of them burst out laughing as Steve realised with horror that he hadn't taken out his ear piece.

* * *

><p><em>Well, my darlings, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I hope it wasn't too full on for you. I tried to keep it toned down. Thank you so much for all the lovely reviews so far. They mean the world to me and I'd love to know your opinions on this chapter too. Also, quick question, would you like to see a one-shot on how Axel and Steve first met? I have plot bunnies hopping around in my head.<em>

_Thanks again.  
>Kerr x.<em>


	6. And We Only Roll Through Guns Blazing

_Dedicated to Blue darling, for helping me out with this chapter and for obsessing constantly with me._

**.**

**And we only roll through guns blazing  
><strong>so you don't wanna roll with either me or my lady  
>time after time<br>they try and prove me wrong  
>and no one knows the way she saves me<br>_- How We Roll, Loick Essien_

**. **

Steve woke up the following morning with a sick feeling in his stomach. He was immediately aware of what was causing the feeling, Axel, and her meeting with Victor Hesse. The night before seemed almost like a blur when he thought about it, creeping around Arlington's mansion, talking to Axel quietly in the moonlight and then fucking her up against the desk. It seemed almost like it could have been a dream but he remembered with a grimace that his team had heard everything, every detail of what had happened between him and Axel. That was embarrassing and he had no doubt that Danny would probably make the most of it by making fun of him, Chin and Kono would definitely be egging him on.

With an impending sense of dread he got out of his bed, glancing at the clock. He wasn't sure when Axel was due to be going for her conjugal visit with Victor Hesse and it was making him feel edgy like he couldn't believe. He rubbed a hand over his face to wake himself up somewhat. Today was going to be a long day and he knew that he had better get a grip before he went into the office. He didn't know if he could face the knowing, worried looks of his team members if he continued to be jumpy.

He went about his usual morning routine, trying to focus on all the little insignificant things, like brushing his teeth and cleaning his gun thoroughly. As had become the norm Danny walked into the house, without knocking, to pick him up for work.

"Good morning, Romeo," Danny said as he came in with a big grin on his face.

"Shut up, Danny," Steve told his partner with a roll of his eyes. He had known that his rendezvous with Axel last night would be the subject of teasing today and he had known that Danny would start off straight away but he really couldn't be bothered with it today of all days. He could feel the tension in his shoulders whenever he thought about having to watch Axel talking to Victor Hesse and the tension only got worse when he thought that they might end up doing more than talking.

"I see, you're still stamping your authority," Danny teased as Steve cocked his firearm and holstered it.

"Ha, ha, Danno," Steve retorted. "You're hilarious. Is that the best you can do?"

"Oh God, yes," Danny said his smile brighter than the Hawaiian sun and Steve just groaned.

"I'm never going to live this down, am I?"

"Nope," Danny told him cheerfully.

"Great. Right, let's go."

Unfortunately for Steve, Danny didn't stop his teasing for the entire journey and he was actually glad when the car pulled up outside Five-0 Headquarters. However, inside, Chin and Kono were waiting for them with their own teasing remarks.

"Hey _brah_," Kono called to him when he came in through the door with Danny, "did you miss us?"

Steve could tell from her tone that she was taking the piss.

"Be quiet, Kono," he told her irritated already.

"That's it, show her who's boss," Chin ribbed him.

"Did you hear the authority in his tone there?" Danny interjected.

"Well as long as he doesn't stamp it on me I'm fine," Kono decided she wasn't taking Steve's advice.

Steve watched helplessly as the three members of his team dissolved into fits of hysterical laughter at his expense. He didn't think he had ever felt so stupid in his entire life, well, apart from maybe when he found out that his mother's death had actually been the result of a car bomb and not just a traffic accident. Not that he particularly wanted to think about that. Wo Fat had managed to go under the radar and nothing had been heard from him for the last six months and Steve's desire to find the man was starting to put strain on other areas of his life.

He determinedly removed his thoughts from Wo Fat. He knew that thinking about him was likely to stress him out even more than he was and between Axel, Victor Hesse and Richard Arlington he had enough to stress about. He huffed a sigh, trying to relax the tension in his shoulders. Luckily, being of the muscular type, the line of his shoulders didn't look overtly rigid but he wasn't foolish enough to believe that his team couldn't tell exactly how he was feeling.

"Well, when you're all done acting like children," he told his team, "you can join me in the surveillance suite."

The laughing renewed afresh as Steve stalked off in the direction of the surveillance suite. Axel was up and about, getting into a silver car. Camera three turned out to be the camera in her handbag which Steve had no doubt was swinging off her arm as though she was completely used to taking it everywhere with her. He glanced at his watch. It was eight o'clock in the morning and he knew that by the time Axel reached the prison holding Victor Hesse it would be shift change.

He really had to admire her sometimes. Arriving at the prison for a conjugal visit at shift change was an excellent idea. Guards going home after the night shift were too tired to take any notice of anyone coming or going and guards just coming on shift were still waking up. All she had to do was sign in, meet Victor and then get out without the cameras getting a clear shot of her, and that was something Axel was completely capable to doing.

He was about to call the rest of his team in when he stopped. Axel had set her bag down in the passenger seat with the camera facing her. She was wearing a very tight white dress which contrasted brilliantly with her tumbling black locks and was heavily decorated in silver jewellery. She didn't look at him, or give any indication that she had seen him but at the point where she had reached up to the visor Steve could have sworn he had seen a tattoo lurking under her arm, one that hadn't been there before and he was determined that he was going to find out what it was.

"Guys," he called out, "Axel's heading to see Victor Hesse now."

Danny, Chin and Kono all piled into the room then with their serious faces on. They gathered around him to look at Axel leaving the driveway of Arlington's house with her Aviator sunglasses protecting her eyes from the morning sun.

"Isn't she a bit over dressed to be visiting a prison?" Kono commented her eyes flickering over Axel's apparel.

"Well, I suppose she has to look like she's trying to be seductive, with it being a conjugal visit," Chin reasoned with a sideways glance at the hard line of Steve's jaw.

"I suppose," Kono accepted with a shrug. "She's probably more aware of how Victor likes her to look than we are."

"He likes her to look like a lady," Steve said through gritted teeth, memories flooding his mind in quick succession, "which means he likes her in a dress, preferably low cut and to the knee with heels. He likes her in pink but white is just as good and he hates it when she puts her hair up."

His team stared at him and Steve could feel the muscle in his jaw twitching due to the tension.

"Actually," Danny piped up then, "he said something similar to me about Victor's shoes when we were looking for him the first time. It's like his head his just crammed full of facts about Victor Hesse. Do you know anything about the other Hesse brother?"

"Plenty," Steve replied shortly. "He's dead."

In an almost simultaneous action Danny, Chin and Kono all rolled their eyes. Steve wondered whether they had been practicing that so they could do it to him.

"Anton was exactly seven hundred and ninety one days younger than Victor. He wore size nine handmade Italian leather shoes. He liked his women blonde and preferably not too bright. He used to play rugby when he was younger until he damaged his shoulder and even years later it still caused him pain, especially when pressure was applied to it. He idolised his older brother and wanted everything that he had. He looked more like his mother than Victor does. His favourite colour was royal blue and he preferred to wear a shirt with trousers rather than the jeans and t-shirt look Victor always favoured. He ..."

"Okay, okay," Danny said holding his hands up as though in surrender, "we get the picture. I said it then and I'll say it now, your head must be a miserable place."

The tension mounted in Steve's shoulders the nearer Axel got to the prison and by the time she was getting out of the car his shoulders were practically up around his ears. He forced himself to relax. If anything happened he could always leave the room until it was over, he had reasoned with himself but he knew that he wouldn't. He was obviously a masochist because he knew that if something were to happened between Axel and Victor Hesse he would be here throughout the entire thing, watching. In a way it made him feel like a pervert, like watching a porn film, at work, which could turn out what it would surmount to.

"It was a good idea to go at shift change," Chin commented as they watched Axel enter the prison with guards both entering and leaving. "Although I'm sure a few of them are going to notice her in that outfit she's wearing."

Steve could see what he meant. The camera caught a couple of appreciative looks being thrown Axel's way as she strolled into the prison. She was asked to sign in by a female guard and she placed her bag up on the desk. Steve almost smiled at the way she carefully bent her head as though feigning concentration when she signed in but he knew that she was probably keeping her face from the cameras. He wondered briefly what name she would be signing in under. Maybe he should have informed her that the C.I.A had a brief on Sophia Lauder.

The movement of the camera was somewhat irritating but it couldn't be helped. Axel picked it up and was shown down a corridor into a room. Steve crossed his arms, biceps bulging from tension rather than anything else. The room was pretty bare apart from a table, two chairs and a bed, a double bed. The walls were painted Magnolia, a colour that reminded Steve briefly of the Army barracks he had once stayed in. The camera settled on the table, the angle of it managing to incorporate the door, the edge of the bed and the chair that Axel was currently settling herself into. It was also managed to glimpse the edge of the box of condoms sitting on the table.

The wait couldn't have been more than four or five minutes but the Five-0 team began to shift nervously about in the surveillance suite, apart from Steve who always seemed to lock his body down when under stress. Axel, however, seemed perfectly all right with the waiting, sitting still in her chair, occasionally brushing a hand through her hair or over her knee.

Steve didn't flinch when the door opened but his muscles screamed in protest, wanting nothing more than to leap through the screen and start beating the man who had just been let into the room.

The surprise that flickered over Victor Hesse's face would have been almost comical if Steve hadn't been in such a bad mood. The moment the Irishman's eyes landed on Axel his jaw practically dropped open, although he had far too much self control for that, and Axel didn't bat an eyelid. The door closed slowly behind him and Victor glanced over his shoulder to see that it was shut. He then rubbed a hand over his chin before he took a seat perched on the edge of the bed. Axel's eyes followed him.

"Sophia, is it now?" he said his Irish accent as strong as ever making Steve want to recoil from it.

"Victor," Axel replied with a nod of her head but she spoke his name softly, too softly.

"Ye keep coming back to me it seems," he said, his tone curious. "What is this, the third or fourth time now? I must start giving myself more credit."

His smirk was arrogant bordering on insolent.

"I wouldn't flatter yerself tae soon," Axel replied briskly with her own smirk sliding onto her face, "I'm strictly here on business, ye ken how it is."

Victor's gaze flickered over the length of her appreciatively, suspicion dancing languidly in his eyes. He did not bothered to disguise the look he was giving her and Axel made no comment about what he was doing. She simply allowed him to look at her. Steve was strongly aware that Victor wasn't handcuffed and could pretty much be across the room at her in a mere second.

"So who are ye working for now?" he asked eventually his eyes tearing away from her chest to settle on her face.

"Richard Arlington," Axel informed him briefly.

"Oh, yer Englishman, ye certainly get around. Are ye sleeping with him too?"

"Ye make it sound like I sleep with everyone I happen tae work with."

Victor laughed.

"Well, I would be rather put out if ye'd slept with my little brother," he told her.

Axel blinked then and Steve watched as she tilted her head down as she uncrossed her legs then crossed her ankles, shifting slightly in her seat. They were movements he had seen her make thousands of times, the signs of being uncomfortable with the subject. It was in essence an excellent act of sympathy and regret.

"I'd heard about Anton," she said softly. "I'm sorry."

"He'd said to me a few days before that he'd seen ye," Victor told her startling Steve. He hadn't known that Axel had actually been in contact with Anton before he had gone to arrest him. He wondered why the hell Axel had kept that from him.

"Aye, briefly," she agreed but didn't delve further into the circumstances or the reason for her meeting with Anton.

"So are ye sleeping with yer man, Arlington?" Victor reverted back to his original question obviously determined not to be thrown off the trail.

"Aye."

She met his gaze straight on when she responded, almost as though she was daring him to make a big deal out of it. In the surveillance suite Danny, Chin and Kono all glanced at Steve who took no notice of their expressions and instead focused intently on the screen before him. He was making a huge effort to not saying anything or, in fact, move a muscle. So far so good and Victor hadn't touched her yet. He wasn't sure if he could stand the waiting, every second he was anticipating that Victor was going to get off the bed and grab Axel.

"Ye always were straight forward," Victor commented with a laugh, "even if ye don't ever give yer real name."

"Harder tae track under many different aliases," Axel told him with an indulgent smile, "and I'm no the kind of woman who likes tae be tracked."

Victor laughed out loud at that and Steve felt like he died a little inside with that laugh.

"So yer sleeping with this Arlington," Victor began to be serious for a moment, "but he sends ye here to meet with me, a man ye've slept with on more than one occasion, so that ye can broker a deal with me on his behalf or is the fact that ye have slept with me the entire point? If so he's a smart man but he can't love ye."

The smile that slid up Axel's face was something odd to Steve and for a moment he was confused but then he suddenly realised what it was. Axel actually liked Victor Hesse. Well, that was maybe a little extreme, it was more the idea that if she had just met him in a bar somewhere with no knowledge of who he was or what he did she would have found him charming and attractive and she would have had no compunction about either going home with him or going on a date with him. It might not be much but it still jolted him to realise it.

"Who says I've told him that I've slept with ye?" Axel replied back. "Anyway, I've never required him tae love me. I thought ye knew me well enough tae realise that, Victor. It's no like ye ever loved me, now is it?"

Victor's eyes dropped to the floor briefly at that, avoiding her question obviously but it wasn't one Axel required at answer to.

"So yer man, does he want ye to sleep with me?" the Irishman asked her looking back up.

Axel shrugged.

"My decision," she told him.

"Do ye want to sleep with me? The conjugal visit would suggest that."

Axel smiled at him.

"Well, actually I'm no wanting tae have our conversation recorded and I'm trying tae avoid the notice of HPD, hence why this is a conjugal visit," she explained. "Nothing particularly suspicious about a woman visiting a man in prison so he can get a bit of sexual release. Aren't ye glad yer in prison here instead of in Ireland? No conjugal visit then."

"Well yer the first one to request a conjugal visit with me," Victor told her with a grin, "and although I'm disappointed that it's not for the desire of my body I'll say it was a well calculated move. I don't doubt that Steve McGarrett regularly checks who has visited me."

Much to Steve's amusement, Axel tilted her head to the side like a confused puppy and said,

"Steve McGarrett?"

"He was Naval Intelligence, had been tracking me and Anton for five years," Victor told her briefly. "He's the one who shot Anton."

Steve liked the fact that Victor had completely left out the actual circumstances of Anton's death including that Victor had held his father hostage before murdering him.

"I'll keep my eye out for him," Axel promised, "but before we get carried away in catching up can I lay the facts out on the table for ye?"

"Only if I can lay ye out on the table afterward," Victor teased her.

Steve felt sick. He had never expected this easy camaraderie between Victor and Axel. They seemed like old friends, who knew each other well enough that they easily fell back into their old patterns and habits, talking like they'd never been apart. The casual way in which they talked about their sexual relationship as well was making him uncomfortable because they were too comfortable together for his liking.

"Arlington is going tae be entertaining Malika Pereira in the upcoming weeks," Axel explained to him, "and he wants tae be able to secure a deal with her by offering her respective clients in the Middle East, as our Senorita Pereira is intent on branching out her operations tae include there, but of course, he doesn't want tae be offering her any of his own clients hence where ye come in. He is asking for client's details so he may offer them Malika to provide the services ye had previously done."

Victor listened quietly to all of this.

"I'd be surprised if my clients hadn't found someone else to provide them with what they need but I can certainly pass details on, for a price."

"I informed him of as much," she said, "but this deal is important tae him and he would be appreciative of yer cooperation."

"Hence his reasons for sending ye," Victor surmised. "Always the deal broker, eh?"

"Always," Axel agreed with a grin.

"So what do I get in return for my cooperation?"

"I think it is more a question of what ye can get with yer current predicament. After all, it is surely difficult tae give an imprisoned man what he desires for what use can he make of it? There'd be no point say telling ye that he'd get ye a motorcycle because it's no like ye can just leave it parked outside the prison."

Victor rubbed a hand against his chin again, obviously thinking.

"Yer man, Arlington, is of course aware that my current circumstances also limit me in ways that I can be of assistance to him but that, of course, certain things may be taken care of which would certainly pay me back for my willingness to provide him with the information he needs."

Steve frowned. That had been a slightly cryptic message but he thought he had understood the gist of it. If the things Victor was alluding to meant him and his team then he definitely got the message loud and clear. He was surprised by Axel's cautious tiptoeing around the subject as though she was trying not to give too much away. Maybe she felt that if she talked too boldly about the subject then Victor might be inclined to be suspicious. Still, it seemed there would have to be a meet after all if only for Axel to explain what was going on.

"I would be willing tae return maybe next week in order to secure yer agreement to the deal," Axel assured him. "We are no expecting Malika tae put in an appearance for another fortnight maybe but any later than say Thursday next week would be too late. Of course, earlier would be preferable."

"So soon?" he responded eyebrows flickering up. "Has Malika got yer man on his guard?"

"This deal has been a long time in coming," Axel said, "and he has been pursuing several options in order tae secure it. Ye just happen tae be the best option at the current moment."

Victor seemed to consider this.

"Well, ye coming back so soon will certainly be enough to do some good to my reputation," he said jokingly. "Have ye worked for Malika as well then?"

Axel shook her head to indicate that she hadn't.

"So ye won't have met John Da Cova then?" he asked in an amused tone. "Well, he's a lady killer to be sure and yer man would be a fool not to use ye as an enticement in order to sweeten the deal. Malika tends to listen to John maybe a bit more than she should."

Axel smirked and the sight of it made Steve clench his fist. He did not want to think about Axel sleeping with any more criminals than she already had.

"I'll be sure tae mention that tae him then."

"Of course, he's knows yer worth since he sent ye to sweeten the deal with me," Victor observed looking her up and down, his eyes seeming to linger at her legs, "and ye came like this." He gestured at her person. "He seems to know what he is doing."

"How do ye ken that this wasn't my own idea?" Axel hinted with a wide smile.

"Are you trying to entice me? It's working to be sure."

Steve did flinch then when Victor did exactly what he had been anticipating he would do. He got off the edge of the bed and in a lighting move had grabbed Axel from her seat, knocking the table, before pining her between him and the wall. The jerk to the table managed to knock over her handbag so that the Five-0 team had to tilt their heads to the side to watch Victor pressing his lips hungrily into Axel's with one of his hands pining her right arm to the wall above her head and his other hand wrapped around her neck. Steve really could have done without seeing the way Axel's hand was sliding over Victor's arse. He wanted to look away, to not see Axel's willing interaction with Hesse but he couldn't, so he gritted his teeth and re-crossed his arms over his chest.

"I feckin' love that dress on ye," Victor gasped to Axel when he eventually broke away from her.

"Well, ye did happen tae buy it for me," Axel responded in a slightly breathless voice.

Steve felt that he was going to end up wearing his teeth right down with the grinding he was doing.

"Did I?" he breathed back. "Well, it's been a while since I saw ye last."

He kissed her again then brutally, the force of him smacking her head off the wall. Axel didn't even seem to notice as she kissed him back. Steve closed his eyes briefly. He really didn't want to see this. It was taking every ounce of his will power not to start cursing liberally.

"Ye tell yer man I'll think over his proposal," Victor said and Steve reopened his eyes. He had stopped kissing Axel again but had yet to let go of her. He didn't like the way Axel was looking up into Victor's eyes nor the way her body was pressed up against his. He let her go as suddenly as he had grabbed her. She moved away from the wall with a smile on her lips which seemed to encourage him and he grabbed her chin to plant another firm kiss on her mouth.

"I suppose ye'll want me back before next Thursday then," she said in a knowing tone.

"Well, Thursday will be plenty enough, Sophia," he said lightly. "Maybe I'll take yer man up on his enticement then but for now I'll weigh the options realistically."

Steve managed to not breathe a sigh of relief when he realised that Victor was not going to fuck Axel right in front of him. He supposed that if Victor knew his relationship to Axel and that he was actually watching he would have taken pleasure in being brutal with her just to anger him. He was intensely glad at that moment that Victor had no idea about the camera, or who Axel was or the fact that he had a relationship with her.

The camera was righted suddenly as Axel gathered her bag and then, surprisingly, gave Victor a hug in farewell.

"Next week," she promised him.

She let go of him and headed towards the door. She knocked on it three times and stood to wait. The camera of her handbag still had a good shot of Victor who was studying Axel with care.

"Sophia," he called just as the door opened, "Etain how is she?"

Steve frowned, racking his brain in his encyclopaedia of Victor Hesse for some inkling about who Etain might be. He studied Victor's expression carefully but as always his face was guarded making it difficult to read anything off him.

"Oh," Axel's voice was whisper soft, "she's fine, Victor, just fine."

She left with that, the camera bobbing around as she quickly strode out of the prison. Once she was in sight of her car Steve turned to his team who were also looking rather confused by the last exchange between Axel and Victor.

"Find out anything you can about this Etain," he told them swiftly and then dug in his pocket for his vibrating phone. He glanced briefly at the caller ID to see that he didn't recognise the number. He answered, slapping the phone to his ear.

"McGarrett."

"I think we need tae do a meet," Axel's voice came over the phone.

"When?"

"As soon as possible."


	7. You Did Not Think When You Sent Me

_So here we have chapter seven. I struggled a little with this one, trying not to give away too much information and I thought it was going to be really short but again over 5, 000 words so enjoy =)._

_Time for the translations again (did you miss them in the last chapter?)_

_dinnae - don't  
>Ah - I<br>cannae - can't  
>aye - normally means yes but can also translate to always (which it does in this chapter)<br>ken - Know (not barbie's ex)  
>whit - what<br>dae - do  
>hae - Have<br>onythin' - anything  
>da - dad, father<br>fur - for  
>wis - was<br>didnae - didn't  
>roond - round<br>oan - on_

_Maybe I should just send you all Scottish dictionaries haha. =)_

* * *

><p><strong>You did not think when you sent me to the brink<strong>  
>you desired my attentions but denied my affections<br>but tell me now where was my fault  
>in loving you with my whole heart<br>_- White Blank Page, Mumford & Sons_

**.**

Steve drove Danny's Camaro to the beach restaurant that Axel was having her lunch at. He felt rather apprehensive about going to meet Axel in broad daylight in the middle of day when she was undercover. Anyone could see them but she had reassured him that Arlington was going to be busy and if anyone did see them she could always say that the police were questioning her in relation to the suspected involvement of Richard Arlington in the murders of the two scientists. He wasn't sure that it was a decent explanation but he was used to the fact that Axel didn't take no for answer.

Beside him Danny was quiet, staring out the window with a thoughtful expression on his face. Steve could see the crease between his eyebrows that meant the cogs were turning, maybe even grinding a little. Steve wondered briefly what his partner was thinking and whether or not it was related to the case or even to their current situation of going to meet Axel. Steve knew Danny wouldn't think that this arrangement was at all a safe option and Steve had to agree. He knew he should have refused to meet like this but along with Axel's downright stubbornness was a curiosity to know whether she just wanted to see him. Not that he would ask her that but it made him feel the need to see her, especially after this morning with Victor.

He was still confused about the whole situation. He felt horribly guilty about it especially with what had happened last night and the fact that technically he was still seeing Catherine. It wasn't fair on her at all and she certainly deserved a better explanation than the one he had given her. He still pondered over what she had said that night, how she could never compare and that he should call her when Axel had left. He didn't think she had meant physically.

They duly arrived at their destination and Steve parked the car up. He glanced at his partner briefly to see Danny was looking back at him with a mixture of apprehension and doubt on his face. Without saying a word Steve got out of the car. He didn't need to ask what Danny was thinking right now, it was written plain over his face. He didn't need to explain a thing.

They strolled through the restaurant together taking care to make sure their badges and firearms were concealed beneath their clothing and trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. Steve found Axel in no time, like his eyes were drawn to her. She was sitting in a booth near the bar, a spot she preferred no matter what bar, restaurant or club she was in. As much as he hated to share any similarities with Victor Hesse he had to admit that Axel did look staggering in that dress. He watched her for a moment before she saw them as she ordered her lunch from a young, and admiring, waiter and then sipped the swirling brown liquid from the glass in front of her. He knew instinctively it was whisky of some sort; Axel was a Scot through and through.

It was over the rim of her glass that their eyes met and, for an instant, he could have sworn there was something close to panic thundering in her eyes but it was gone the next moment.

"There she is," Danny finally spotted her, drawing Steve's attention. He nodded in her direction and Steve looked back at her to see that she was no longer paying them any attention.

"Remember that you need to act like you don't know her," Danny hissed to him as they made their way towards Axel, "and don't call her by her real name."

Steve felt insulted that Danny could think he was capable of jeopardising Axel's cover but he didn't say anything because he knew what Danny's response would be. After all, he had been reckless last night which could have blown the roof off the whole operation.

"Sophia Lauder?" Danny questioned looking every bit the professional as they stopped at Axel's table. Steve hadn't realised that his partner was such a convincing actor.

"Can I help you, gentlemen?" Axel's look was one of surprise but then she had always been convincing.

Danny and Steve slipped into the seats opposite her. The smile on her face was one of pleasant interest and Steve knew it would stay that way until they left. Axel almost never let her guard down unless she was certain that she wasn't being watched.

"What is it?" Steve asked her in a low voice getting straight to the reason for this dangerous meet.

"What? No foreplay?" she teased with a straight face as she took a sip of her drink. He could smell the peaty overtones of the whisky and the smell evoked memories buried deep in his subconscious. He glared at her. He wasn't in the mood for the same joking camaraderie she had displayed that morning with Victor Hesse.

"I'm worried," she confided eventually, obviously interpreting his glare correctly, "about the situation with Victor Hesse. Arlington told me he'd never met the man but I know Victor and from the way he was talking about him it seemed as though he had met him. Whatever Arlington has up his sleeve he's leaving me out of it and that worries me."

Steve and Danny glanced at each other briefly.

"Do you think you've been compromised?" Steve asked her trying to sound as professional as possible and keep the concern from his voice.

"No," she replied at once. "Arlington is no the sort tae hang around if he thinks he's been double crossed but with Malika Pereira coming and him sending me tae Victor the whole thing just feels a lot bigger than a simple client deal."

"What exactly make you think that?" Danny questioned her suspiciously as though accusing her of leaving things out.

"Call it my gut," she replied stiffly, "but Malika Pereira, Richard Arlington and the Hesse Brothers were Europe's big three, well, as long as ye don't count the Russians, and now Anton's dead and Victor is in jail the other two decide tae meet in the very country, on the very island where Victor is incarcerated. The whole thing stinks like yesterday's chip shop papers and Arlington is lying tae me. He kens Victor, I'm pretty certain of that, but the question I'm asking myself is why did he lie tae me about it? It seems like a right stupid idea if ye consider that Victor could have told me. How could Arlington ken for sure that he wouldn't?"

Steve frowned. He was used to Axel's gut and usually it was right which made the current situation all the more puzzling.

"What did Victor say that made you think that he knows Arlington?" Steve asked her. He knew Victor Hesse inside out or, at least, he had two years ago, who knew what had changed since he had gone to prison. He had been watching Axel's conversation with Victor and he hadn't got the sense at all that Victor knew Arlington.

"He asked me twice if I was sleeping with him," Axel explained simply not betraying any discomfort at bringing this up. "I managed tae successfully deflect him the first time but he persisted with it. Victor is never that interested in who I'm sleeping with unless he's met them."

Danny frowned.

"What do you mean?" he asked her. "Why would Victor Hesse care about who you've been sleeping with?"

Steve watched Axel carefully as she rolled her eyes. He felt like he could sense something, an undercurrent of tension but he didn't know exactly what it could relate to. She looked relaxed enough, leisurely fingering her glass of whisky with that politely interested smile on her face. There was something about her in this moment that he really didn't understand and he also didn't understand what she was saying about Victor. Hesse wasn't the type of man to care. Steve had profiled him and as far as he was concerned the only person Victor cared about was his brother Anton.

"That is what I'm saying," Axel responded coolly, "he doesn't normally. The only time he has ever done that before was when he wanted tae ken whether I had slept with a friend of his, Bobby Caldwell, an American explosives expert that I had worked with previously, and before ye ask I hadn't."

"Why does it matter if he knows them?" Steve wondered aloud.

Axel shrugged.

"I have no idea," she told him, "as much as I'm a good profiler, I'm no a mind reader. What goes through Victor's head rarely comes out his mouth unless he thinks it's worth his while tae tell me. Ye should ken that well enough Steve."

The insolent way she cocked her head a little when she said that last line made Steve want to grab her and shake her, hard. He didn't quite understand why she always managed to do this to him but it didn't matter what it was she could infuriate him, drive him literally crazy but in the end he really didn't mind it. He supposed in some respects it was a bit like his relationship with Danny. They drove each other crazy, they constantly argued, more often than not in the car, but he really didn't care about any of that because Danny was his partner, his best friend, his family and that was what really mattered.

"Look," Axel said in a serious tone that completely mismatched the expression on her face, "I'm trying tae warn ye that I think ye should be checking who is coming tae the island and that maybe ye should be keeping a closer eye on Victor, because whatever is going down I think he's a major part of it."

"Exactly how can he do anything from inside a cell?" Danny said in exasperation.

The expression changed on Axel's face but however brief the look was it had the desired effect. At the same moment both Steve and Danny got it.

"They're going to break him out," Steve practically choked in astonishment. "Why?"

"I'm no saying that they are," she reminded him patiently, "but I find it mighty suspicious that they're all congregating here. The thing is Malika Pereira and Victor Hesse are both high profile arm dealers in Europe, both on most wanted lists and the moment the pop up on a grid the police, intelligence agencies or even military are all over them. Arlington is high profile tae but from his connections he is only suspected of dealing tae terrorists, that doesn't mean he actually is and he's never been caught because he's excellent at covering his tracks. He's a weapons manufacturer, that is well known, he's dealt weapons to both Britain and that U.S. Britain might be keeping an eye on him but that doesn't mean anyone else is."

Steve didn't know how to respond. The idea that two major arms dealers were on his island wanting to break the man who murdered his father out of prison filled him with both rage and cold dread. He wanted to act, now and he'd always been that kind of rash, shoot-now-ask-questions-later, type of person but he had to listen to Axel. She was the one undercover, the one with the mission, the one with the technically higher rank than him.

"Be straight with us," Danny said firmly leaning further into the table, "what exactly is your mission here?"

Axel's eyes flickered from Danny to Steve briefly.

"Ye must understand Detective Williams that any breach on my part can lead tae my demise," she said gently. "I am what is referred tae as a deniable asset, which means if I'm caught the British Government will deny any knowledge of my existence, it will be as if I've never been. I am disposable, which of course is the entire point."

She paused then as though to allow Danny to absorb this information.

"I'm undercover with Arlington tae discover what he's up tae, who he is contacting, what shipments he may be making and tae who. If he's a threat tae us I will take him out and that will be the end tae it and anyone else I can take along with him is all the better. I'm telling ye this because Steve trusts ye with his life and no for any other reason."

For some reason Danny smiled at that.

"What? Do you not trust me?"

"I trust no one," she answered briefly, "but that comes with the territory."

Steve met her eyes then but she would not hold his gaze, instead turning her attention back to the glass of whisky. There was something she wasn't saying and it was niggling in the back of his head, wanting him to ask her, to demand to know what she was hiding. Axel was a brilliant actress, years of being undercover, of pretending to be someone she wasn't, had honed her into a machine that never let down it's guard but he could tell there was something, some doubt in her that had never been there before.

"So why would Arlington and Pereira want to break Victor Hesse out of jail?" Steve asked her the burning question that was prodding him in the back of the head.

"I don't ken," Axel replied exasperation flickering in her eyes. "I have an idea but it's no like it's a certainty."

"What is it?" Danny asked her immediately.

"Well, about four and half years ago Victor and Anton were involved in human trafficking out of Japan and managed tae draw the attention of the Yakuza and Wo Fat."

Steve's fist clenched involuntarily at the mere mention of Wo Fat's name causing Axel to frown.

"Ye ken the man then?" she asked glancing between them both. "I had been for hearing that the Yakuza have a strong foothold here on the island."

Steve looked at Danny. Did he know Wo Fat? The question seemed almost ludicrous after how things had been for the last couple of years but then Steve could not expect Axel to know what was going on in his life when she had been busy with her own.

"Yeah we know him," Danny answered for him when he realised that Steve was momentarily tongue tied but Axel barely spared him a glance instead focusing solely on Steve.

"What?" she asked him. "What am I missing?"

Steve heaved a sigh. He really didn't want to dredge up all this. Just thinking about him made himself feel physically drained and emotionally frustrated. He knew that Victor Hesse might have been the one that had pulled the trigger on his father and that Koji Noshimuri might have planted the bomb under the car his mother died in but they had only been puppets in a show.

"You know that I told you my mother had died in a car crash," Steve began hesitantly and Axel nodded, "well it was actually a car bomb that was meant for my father. I think someone wanted him to back off the case he was working. Now when Victor killed my father remember I told you he called me champ on the phone?"

"Aye," Axel responded quickly, "ye were confused because he'd never called ye it before."

"Exactly," he agreed. "So when I got back I found an old tool box in the garage of the house that said champ and I'm pretty sure that he wanted me to find it. It had lots of evidence from my mother's death in it so I know that my father was still working her case but there were other things in the box that I just couldn't make head nor tail of but eventually I worked out that Hiro and Koji Noshimuri were responsible for my mother's death with Koji actually having planted the bomb himself."

Axel frowned.

"Noshimuri?" she repeated the name. "There is a Noshimuri in the Japanese branch of the Yakuza and I am certain that Hiro Noshimuri is his cousin."

"More than likely," Danny chipped in. "When one family member is involved with an organisation like the Yakuza then it's a highly probability that the others are involved too but Hiro was the head of the Yazuka in Hawaii."

Axel nodded.

"So what lead you to Wo Fat?"

"Jenna Kaye," Steve told her. "She was a C.I.A low level analyst who had been tracking Wo Fat for years and on her information a team had walked into a trap which had killed them all, including Jenna's fiancé. She suggested that Victor had been working for Wo Fat all along and that Victor had been sent by Wo Fat to murder my father and it just so happened to coincide with my capture of Anton. Jenna told me that Victor had already been on the island before I had arrested Anton."

"Jenna's now our analyst," Danny informed her.

"I haven't met her, have I?" Axel asked with a puzzled frown marking her forehead.

"No," Steve was the one who answered her question, "she's in Virginia visiting her parents. She really put us on track with hunting down Wo Fat but then about a year and a half ago I discovered that my father had been investigating the governor of Hawaii, Pat Jameson, who had actually given me this job and created this task force. He believed that she was corrupt, working alongside criminals, taking pay-offs. You see the champ box was stolen from my house and although I recovered the box I never got the evidence back until someone started sending me it piece by piece."

"Shite," Axel swore quietly, "this sounds like a novel by Quentin Jardin. Who the hell was sending ye the evidence?"

"The Governor's public safety liaison, Laura Hills, she was killed by a car bomb," Steve continued. "After that everything fell into place. The Governor had been working with Wo Fat and he had tried to murder my father when he got too close."

"So dumb ass here decides to go all "commando" on us," Danny interrupted him, "and tries to confront the Governor, without any back up, of course. So he's got a gun pointed at the Governor when Wo Fat tasers him, takes his weapon and then shoots the Governor. So Steve's arrested."

Axel looked between the two of them with an expression of the mildly impressed type.

"Fuck me sideways with an orange," she expostulated. "I thought my job was fun."

Steve managed not to laugh but it was a very close thing and he did in fact snort and not quietly either. Danny beside him was staring at Axel in that shocked, "you just said what?" kind of expression on his face. It had been a while since Steve himself had heard that particularly expression of shock come out of Axel's mouth but he had to admit his reaction the first time she had said it was probably pretty close to what Danny's was now.

"How did you get out of that?" Axel pressed ignoring both Danny's shock and Steve's snort.

Steve looked at his partner briefly.

"Well, Danno here swept the Governor's office, finding the missing evidence from my father's toolbox which he presented to HPD. He contacted Catherine who pulled up satellite images of Wo Fat entering the Governor's home not long after myself. I obviously had taser burns on my neck and to top it all off Danno also found a hidden camera in the Governor's office which she had planted to catch Laura stealing my father's evidence from her cabinet. So I was cleared."

"Jeez," Axel whistled quietly, "well, ye've certainly been busy. You lost Wo Fat after that I gather?"

Steve rolled his eyes towards Danny.

"Right, well, as I was saying," Axel launched back into her story, "Victor and Anton fell in with Wo Fat and the Yakuza about four years ago."

"You knew Victor was working for the Yakuza?" Steve accused her angrily. "You could have told me that when I said that he had murdered my father."

He couldn't quite believe that Axel had known about that and hadn't told him. It could have saved him months of the run around if he had known about Wo Fat from the start.

"Dinnae start tae cause a scene, McGarrett," Axel hissed at him. "Ah cannae aye ken exactly whit ye need tae ken and dae ye really think that Ah'd no hae told ye if Ah hae thought that it had onythin' tae dae wi' yer da's death. As far as Ah wis aware Victor and Anton were workin' alongside Wo Fat no fur him and let's be honest wi' yer track record wi' the Hesse brothers how wiz Ah tae ken that he didnae just gang after yer da because he wis yer da. After a' ye tracked the both o' them roond the globe fur neigh oan five years."

Danny had that stumped look again, obviously not being able to understand one word that had come out of Axel's mouth. Steve felt his anger subside. Axel was right. How was she to know that Wo Fat had anything to do with his father's murder when it had been Victor Hesse that had pulled the trigger? That had been the whole point, of course, because Steve hadn't been able to see past Victor, hadn't been able to see that the whole thing had nothing to do with his capture of Anton, that it would have happened anyway.

"Alright, I'm sorry," Steve said holding up his hand as though in surrender and Danny turned an incredulous look on him. He wasn't sure if that was in reaction to the swift apology or if it was because Steve never apologised to Danny that quickly even if he has just gotten him shot.

Axel eyed him suspiciously for a moment.

"Anyway Victor has a relationship with Wo Fat," Axel continued after she was certain Steve had calmed down, "and Malika Pereira is wanting to branch intae the Middle East and maybe Richard Arlington wants tae expand his business intae China. So either, Arlington, Hesse and Pereira want tae get rid of Wo Fat tae take over his businesses or they want his help tae establish connections, with him being an exclusive part of their dealings and Victor is the one who's working for him."

Steve rubbed his eyes. This whole rigmarole between Victor Hesse and Wo Fat and all the other people in on their fucking plans was starting to make him extremely tired. He really just wanted to not ever think about any of them ever again. Not like it was going to happen though.

"Right, so we'll up security on Hesse," Danny suggested.

"Ye'll have tae be subtle aboot it," Axel told him, "but remember I'm only speculating. I'm no saying it's for definite. Maybe Arlington and Malika Pereira just want Victor tae set up the meeting."

"I'll have Kono keep an eye on who is coming in and out of the country too," Danny continued, nodding briefly at Axel.

"We should maybe speak to Kamekona and Sang Min about whom else could smuggle Malika Pereira onto the island," Steve piped up. "When is she coming?"

"The twenty fifth give or take a day," Axel informed him, "but that's all the information I can give you. Can ye do me a favour though, Steve?"

Steve had trouble hiding the surprise on his face. Axel never asked for favours, ever, period. She was one of those do-it-yourself types and it often made him realise that he wasn't the only one with control issues.

"What is it?"

"It's probably going tae be helpful in yer investigation anyways since actually Victor nor Anton were as good at covering their tracks as Arlington is. Paris, in July about three years ago, Victor had a meeting and I have a hunch that it was Arlington. See if ye can do some digging for me?"

Steve glanced at Danny and then rubbed a hand over his stubble.

"Well, Jenna's back in five days," he said at length. "I could get her to look into it and she's still got contacts at the C.I.A who might help her out."

"Well, make sure she doesn't mention me if she does speak tae them," Axel said firmly. "The C.I.A will be more than pissed if they find I'm here on their territory. Ye don't want me disappearing intae one of their black bags now do ye?"

She grinned then almost as though she found the whole idea mildly amusing but Steve felt slightly disturbed. The chances were that if Axel, as a British spy, was found on American soil then the C.I.A would undoubtedly take her and only the devil knew what they'd do with her.

"So gentlemen, I think ye've taken up enough of my time. I'm sure my lunch will be arriving any moment now," Axel said that politely interested smile now fixed back onto her face an indication that she had no more to share with them. Ultimately, they were being dismissed. Steve had mixed feelings about that.

"One more thing before we go," Steve said stopping Danny mid rise.

Axel looked at him interest but Steve could see the flash of wariness in the back of the slate grey eyes.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Victor mentioned an Etain," he said. "Who is she?"

Something flickered for a moment.

"Don't bother looking for her Steve," Axel said in a tone that was far too blasé. "Ye'll no find her."

If anything her nonchalant manner made Steve all the more suspicious.

"Who is she?" he pressed again. There was something about the whole thing that was off. There was something right under the surface or on the tip of his tongue but whatever it was he just wasn't quite getting it and the warning in Axel's eyes did nothing to discourage his suspicion.

"Don't look for her, Steve," she warned calmly. "It's a need tae ken basis and there is no reason that ye need tae ken anything about Etain."

"You know I'm going to look," he told her with a firm smile.

"I wish ye luck then because ye'll no find her, no one single trace and the more ye dig the more ye'll bring down people on ye that ye don't want poking their noses intae yer business. Don't bother. Ye ken that curiosity killed the cat."

Steve opened his mouth to respond with the usual comeback to that but Axel beat him to it.

"And no matter what anyone says satisfaction did no bring him back."

They stared at each other over the table for a couple of seconds before Danny decided it was time to break up the contest.

"Thank you for your time, Miss Lauder," he said courteously, "and my partner and I hope you enjoy the rest of your vacation."

Axel smiled sweetly at Danny as he rose to his feet, Steve beside him.

"Where I come from Detective, it's called a holiday which sounds even more appealing does it not."

"Enjoy your day, Miss," Steve told her with a brief nod and Axel bestowed a false smile on him too, full of sweetness that she didn't usually posses.

"Thank you, Detectives," she took her leave of them before Steve turned to make his way out of the restaurant, Danny following him but not before he whispered to Axel out the corner of his mouth,

"You know he's going to look."

Axel didn't reply but she winked briefly and Danny grinned as he took off after his partner.

"She's hiding something Danny," Steve informed him as they reached the car. "There is something that she's not telling me and I can feel it. I tracked the Hesse brothers for five years and I've never heard anything about this Etain."

Danny shrugged.

"You were probably too focused on learning what kind of shoe he wore," he reminded him with a briefly smile as they got into the car. Steve gave him one of the patient looks that a teacher gives a student who has messed up, again.

"Look," Danny tried the "be reasonable" route as Steve started up the engine, "maybe this Etain is a friend of Axel's, someone who worked with her undercover with the Hesse brothers or maybe its code for something else. Axel said you would never find her so don't bother looking. Etain doesn't have to necessarily refer to a person. It could be a fishing boat or a car or anything for all we know. Now you have aneurysm face again."

Steve looked around from where he had been staring at the window clearly not paying attention to anything Danny was saying.

"No I don't," he contested.

"Yeah, you do, babe," Danny confirmed. "Anyway, I think we need to stop focusing on Etain and start focusing on the information that Axel just gave us."

"You really think that Arlington is going to try to break Victor out of jail?" Steve asked. He couldn't really see it himself. If Arlington was that good a covering up his tracks then why would he risk breaking Victor just for some deal?

"I don't know," Danny told him, "but I tell you one thing, I don't think they'll succeed. It'd be a suicide mission. That place is practically impenetrable."

Steve smiled at his partner. He was glad they were both on the same page and knowing that Danny thought that made him feel a whole lot better. Victor Hesse out of the streets again after what had happened last time was not something he could look forward too even if it did give him the chance to kill him. It was better that he stayed rotting in jail.

"You're right, Danno," Steve said. "I don't think he's ever getting out of there."

**.**

Four days later Victor Hesse escaped.

* * *

><p><em>I have to say thank you so much for all the lovely reviews I have so far received and I berate myself for not responding properly to your reviews. You are definitely more deserving of my time so I apologise. In my defence I work full time, I'm writing a novel and I have this and a Sookie Stackhouse multichapter novel on the go. However, that is no excuse and I will endevour to reply to each of your reviews because they truly make my day.<em>

_Of course, I am DYING to know what you think of this chapter and rest assured I will be commencing the next one almost immediately. Have I got you hanging off the edge of your seats yet?_

_Also, look out for the one-shot about Steve and Axel's first meeting because it's nearly finished. I'm calling it ... **Like all good detectives, we must return to the scene of the crime** ... I might post it before the next chapter._

_Can't wait to hear from you.  
>Much love.<em>

_Kerr x._


	8. High Off of Love, Drunk from My Hate

_I apologise profusely for this taking so long my darlings. I've been on a ten day stint at work and my days off before that were taken up with getting my poor dog to the vet for an operation on his leg. But enough of my issues, here is Chapter Eight._

* * *

><p><strong>High off of love, drunk from my hate<br>**it's like I'm huffing paint, I loved it the more I suffer  
>I suffocate, &amp; right before I'm about to drown she resuscitates me<br>she fucking hates me, and I love it  
><em>- Love the way you lie, Eminem feat. Rhianna<em>

**.**

When Jenna Kaye returned to work she found the office humming with activity. Steve was in his office on the phone with his eyebrows drawn together in a furious expression. Danny was in there with his with a look of exasperation on his face, occasionally speaking to Steve who seemed to be stoically ignoring him. Chin and Kono were pouring over the smart table with tension radiating from the line of their shoulders and they both seemed determined to keep their eyes away from the boss's office. She walked further into the room, to see a picture of a relatively handsome man with a broad face on the screen, next the mug-shot of Victor Hesse. She frowned. What the hell was going on here?

"Did we get another case that I haven't heard about?" she asked to announce her presence.

"Jenna," Kono said as she and Chin looked up at her from the other side of smart table.

"You're not supposed to be back at work until tomorrow," Chin commented of her presence. Jenna moved towards them dropping her bag on the floor by the table as she looked up at the two pictures of the big screen.

"I thought I'd drop in and see what was going on," she told them. "What is going on?"

Kono and Chin glanced at each other, wondering exactly how to explain the events of the last week and a bit to her. Jenna studied the faces before her. She had heard about Victor Hesse numerous times and seen his photo. She wondered exactly why Steve's father's killer was now on the screen staring back at her with the black eye and bust lip Steve had given him when he had been arrested. She didn't know the other man. He was probably in his early forties with dark brown hair and eyes to match. He had an air of sophistication around him given off by the suit he was wearing in the photograph. What the hell did he have to do with Victor Hesse?

"Victor Hesse escaped."

It wasn't Chin or Kono who answered her question and Jenna swung round to see that Steve and Danny had now left the office obviously having heard her last question. Steve was tense, his jaw set in a hard line as he looked beyond her at the mug-shot of Victor Hesse on the screen. Beside him Danny looked a little red in the face, probably from shouting, and he was keeping his gaze firmly planted on his partner, like he suspected him of being about to do something stupid.

Jenna took a few moments to absorb this information, shock set in almost immediately before her brain started racing with reasons, connections and outcomes of the whole thing. She didn't understand how the hell Victor Hesse could have escaped from prison.

"What is his connection to this man?" she asked waving a hand to indicate the photograph of the other man on the screen.

"That is the man who engineered his escape," Steve replied with an undercurrent of anger in his tone, "Richard Arlington. He's our chief suspect in the assassinations of the two scientists. He's a British weapons manufacturer suspected of dealing arms to terrorists, and he's currently on the island."

Jenna glanced round at her team mates wondering how on earth their murder investigation managed to suddenly explode into Victor Hesse escaping from jail.

"What is Arlington's connection to Victor Hesse?" she asked looking back at the two photos on the big screen.

"I need you to look for that actually," Steve told her. "We think that Victor met with Arlington in Paris three years ago in July. Could you speak to your contacts at the C.I.A and see if they know anything about it?"

The confusion on Jenna's face was plain for all and sundry to see. The others just waited patiently for her to ask for an explanation and they could slowly see the way her face went through the motions of thought. It would have been easier if she hadn't been in Virginia visiting her parents because then there would be no need to fill her in on the recent alarming events that had taken place.

"So how do you know that Arlington helped Hesse escape if you don't even know if there is a connection between them?" she asked looking back round at Steve.

"Chin fill her in," Steve practically demanded. "Kono, have you got that file on Malika Pereira?"

"Here it is, boss," Kono responded immediately passing a thick, manila folder to him. Steve took it from her without a word, turned on his heel and marched back into his office. After throwing Jenna a quick sympathetic glance Danny followed him his face set in determination. Jenna turned back to look at Chin and Kono as the door closed behind the two partners.

"What the hell has happened?"

**.**

"Don't be stupid," Danny shouted angrily. "You can't just go barging in there with no explanation as to why. Arlington isn't even under surveillance by our own Government and you could blow Axel's cover by just barging in there. You need to have a reason to question someone in connection with any crime. You can't just accuse a prominent business man, even if he is suspected of being an arms dealer to terrorists, of harbouring a fugitive that just broke out of prison."

Steve ignored him and Danny threw his hands up in the air in exasperation unaware that Steve was watching out of the corner of his eye. He knew that what his partner was saying made sense but he didn't want to listen to reason right now. He felt a primal need to hunt down Victor Hesse, kill him along with anyone harbouring him and then fuck Axel hard to hear her call out his name, although any woman would satisfy the need, even if he would rather it was her. He didn't want to admit this to Danny, however, even if he would understand. Those baser animal instincts that he felt didn't need to be shared with anyone.

"I don't know if you've noticed, Super SEAL," Danny tried a different tactic leaning on Steve's desk to look him straight in the eye, "but we no longer have the same "immunity and means" that Governor Jameson gave us. The new Governor prefers us to do things as by the book as possible and to not go off the rails. How exactly are you going to explain to the Governor where we got our information from when you can't tell him about Axel being on the island?"

"I don't know, Danny," Steve expostulated eventually. "I can't just sit here and do nothing when I know that Victor Hesse is currently sitting in Arlington's mansion as smug as hell and ..."

He broke off in exasperation, slamming his fist into his desk. Danny leaned back, folding his arms across his chest to survey his partner with a critical eye.

"And within ten feet of Axel maybe," he finished for him. "Look Axel hasn't seen him. He hasn't been caught by any of her cameras and Arlington hasn't mentioned him to her so we don't know for certain that he's even there. Now I'm not suggesting that we do nothing. We investigate, of course, but we can't just go barging into Arlington's mansion demanding him to give up the whereabouts of Victor Hesse. Let Jenna find the connection between them and then we can maybe go in but first we have to have probable cause."

Steve sighed. He didn't want to sit idle. As an act now ask questions later type of person he really hated waiting around especially when his gut was telling him he was right. He knew Victor was at Arlington's mansion as sure as he knew what type of shoe Victor preferred but Danny was right. They didn't have any proof, not even a connection between them.

"Well, Jenna had better be quick," he mumbled, "or else I'll be saying screw the Governor. He won't complain if I find Victor Hesse in there."

Danny rolled his eyes but thanked God for small mercies. At least, he was now actually listening to reason.

Steve looked out of his office into the main area where a photo of a Hispanic woman who he could only assume was Malika Pereira had now been put up on the screen. Next to her was a photo of a good looking Hispanic man who had to be her right hand Juan Da Cova. In photo he was wearing a black tank top which showed off several tattoos on muscular arms and remembering what Victor had said to Axel when she had gone to visit him Steve didn't like the look of him one bit. He hoped that Arlington wouldn't try to sweeten his deal with Malika Pereira by getting Axel to sleep with him.

"Shall we go and see what they have?" Danny asked him indicating Chin and Kono with a nod of his head. Steve looked back at him the exasperation still plain on his face.

"Since I'm not allowed to do anything else," he said with an almost petulant look that reminded Danny of Grace and made him smile just a little.

"Come on then, princess," Danny said jerking his head toward the door.

Steve got to his feet and followed his partner out of the door. Chin and Kono looked up as they exited the office and Steve glanced around spotting Jenna in her office on the phone talking rapidly, eyebrows drawn together in an expression of concentration. He looked back at the screen as he came to a stop at the top of the smart table. He studied Malika Pereira. She was a beautiful woman with long dark brown hair. The photo was a snapshot taken at an airport of some kind somewhere sunny. She was wearing big sunglasses. The photo of Juan Da Cova was obviously taken at the same time. He too was wearing sunglasses. The photos made them look startlingly alike. They had almost the same shade of dark brown hair.

"Is there any relation between them?" Steve asked causing Kono, Chin and Danny to all look at him in surprise. Kono then immediately turned her attention to the information on the smart table in front of her.

"Not as far as anyone is aware," Kono told him when she looked back up. "There is no mention of them being related. Malika's mother's name is recorded as Lauana Pereira but her father is unknown. There is no record of who Da Cova's parents are so there is nothing to say they are or aren't. Why? Do you think they look alike?"

Steve shrugged.

"It might just be me," he said, "but in those photographs they definitely share a resemblance. It's hard to tell with the sunglasses."

"No I think you're right," Danny backed him up after squinting at the pictures for a moment. "I think there is some kind of resemblance between them, at least, in these photographs. There's something about their mouths."

"Maybe it's just because they're both Portuguese," Chin suggested.

Steve and Danny gave him identical looks of disgust at his doubt in their abilities.

"I got it," Jenna's excited voice rang out as she burst out of her office waving a handful of papers. The other four turned towards her as she skidded to a halt next to the smart table brandishing the papers at Steve who took them from her. The seal of the C.I.A marked the top of the paper. He flicked through the pages finding photographs amongst the documentation all taken in Paris three years ago on July 26th and 27th.

"Excellent," he exclaimed.

"I talked to a couple of my contacts at the C.I.A," Jenna explained excitedly. "It took a few calls around to find the right person but finally one of my fiancé's team mates said he'd been there. So he faxed me over a copy of the files. He said that Victor Hesse met with Arlington over two days but no one took any interest in it because nothing further came of it and Arlington wasn't on anyone's watch list. So the files were stored away."

"And he just gave it to you?" asked Danny looking surprised.

"There is nothing to it," she told him. "It's not like they managed to listen in on what the conversations were about. All they have in the documentation is a background on Arlington, details on when and where they met and photographs of the two of them together."

"You didn't mention why we wanted this, did you?" Steve asked her glancing up briefly from the photographs.

"He didn't ask, I didn't tell."

"Good," Steve responded before he waved the papers in front of Danny's face. "Now we have probable cause."

With a triumphant look he stalked off to his office to grab his badge. Danny looked around the other three.

"Does anyone else think he looks ridiculously happy about that prospect?"

**.**

Much sooner than Danny had wanted they arrived outside the gates of Arlington's mansion beside the guardhouse waiting for the guard to be satisfied with their ID and allow them access to the driveway and house. He nodded them through after what seemed like a thorough investigation of their badges and in the rear view mirror Steve could see him making a phone call, probably to warn Arlington to their arrival. They were never going to be able to catch Victor in Arlington's house if he was constantly going to be forewarned.

The driveway was a long one and as the house came into sight Steve nearly whistled but managed to control himself. The house looked so much bigger and so much more opulent than it had look in the darkness of the other night. He pulled up at the foot of the steps that lead between two marble columns to the stained double wooden front door. He turned off the engine and immediately got out of car. Danny copied his movements bringing with him the photographs that Jenna's contact at the C.I.A had supplied them with.

Steve jogged up the steps with Danny right at his heels. As he reached the top step the door opened and a big man with blond hair wearing a suit came into view. He reminded Steve of Chin and Kono's cousin Sid in his build and he could tell from his movements that he was carrying a weapon concealed under his right arm.

"Five-0," Steve informed him as he moved towards the bodyguard.

"You're expected Detectives."

He had a strong English accent. He inclined his head to Steve and Danny as though in greeting and ushered them through the doorway into the entrance hall of the house. Steve had managed to just get his bearings and he knew roughly the layout of the mansion. It was built in a sort of hollow square. The garden where Axel and Arlington had had dinner was in the middle. The house was over two floors with the rooms all along the inside of the square and the outer side was lined with floor length glass windows between whitewashed pillars. The windows looked out onto the veranda and garden with a balcony on the upper level looking out over them.

Steve and Danny followed the bodyguard down the corridor to the right, the heels of Danny's shoes clicking off the grey stone floor. They turned at the end of the corridor and went half way up before the Englishman stopped and turned, gesturing towards an open door. Steve nodded at him as he turned right into the room and then tried his hardest to make sure his face was completely blank.

The room they were in was the same office that Axel had yanked Steve into the night he had decided to come in. Behind the desk Arlington was sitting looking expectantly at him, his hands clasped in front of him. Standing next to him, looking every inch of stunning, was Axel dressed in a simple green maxi dress, her long black hair curled over one shoulder looking slightly damp.

"Ah Detectives," Arlington greeted them in a jovial manner rising from his chair as Steve and Danny strode further into the room. "I believe you've met my girlfriend, Sophia Lauder. Sophia, you remember Detective Williams and Commander McGarrett."

"Sure I do," Axel replied smiling brightly at them. "Nice tae see ye again Commander, Detective."

"Miss Lauder," Danny greeted her with a nod of his head.

Steve looked at her briefly but then turned their attention back to Arlington who was now resuming his seat.

"I understand that you two were hassling Sophia the other week," Arlington began conversationally, "and now here you are again. I have told you already that I don't know anything about these two nuclear scientists and I have nothing further to add to that statement. Now, if ..."

"We're not here about that," Steve interrupted him rudely. "We're here about Victor Hesse."

Arlington's face changed smoothly into surprise and out of the corner of his eye Steve noticed Axel's eyebrow flick up.

"Victor Hesse," Arlington repeated slowly. "Isn't that the man escaped from prison yesterday?"

"Yes it is," Danny backed Steve up, "and we have reason to believe that as an associate of Hesse you might be harbouring him."

Now his expression was one of shock. Steve managed to not flick his glance over to where Axel was standing. He didn't want to see her expression knowing it would probably be very neutral, not showing any hint of emotion at all.

"Well, that is an outrageous accusation," Arlington said eventually in a very calm manner, "but I'm afraid wholly unfounded, I do not know the man."

"Oh, you don't," said Danny in mock relief. "We've obviously just wasted both our time and yours then. He said he doesn't know him, Steve. We can certainly take that at face value."

Danny turned and started towards the door. Steve didn't move. He understood that Danny had a need for dramatics and theatricality so he just let him get on with it. On the other side of the coin Steve would have preferred to just beat confession out of Arlington. The man might be a genius at covering up his tracks but when it came to hand to hand combat Steve was positive that he'd flake and there was nothing he thought he would enjoy more than pushing Arlington to that edge.

"Oh, I completely forgot," Danny said stopping halfway back to the door. He turned on his heel and practically marched back to the desk. Steve could see the amusement on Axel's face over Danny's antics but Arlington looked unsettled by his behaviour. Danny slammed down the photographs on the desk in front of Arlington. Steve noticed to his twisted pleasure that Arlington had jumped slightly in his chair at the noise the photos had caused.

"I say you're lying," Danny stated with a flourish.

"What is this?" Arlington asked gesturing to the photographs but not actually looking at them. Steve didn't know why he had expected Axel to look more interested in the evidence she had asked him to dig up because when he glanced up at her she looked completely unmoved.

"This is what we call probable cause," Steve told him flashing a quick smirk at Danny, "photographs of you with Victor Hesse. Would you like to explain to us how you can claim to not know a man who you spent two days in meetings with?"

Steve had to give Arlington credit because his stoic attitude did not waver as he leaned forward to pick up the photos. He flicked through them leisurely as though he was merely looking at some holidays pics. Axel looked over his shoulders at them but nothing changed in her expression, not that Steve had expected it to.

"Yes, I met with this man," Arlington admitted readily tossing the photographs back onto the desk, shocking Steve and Danny. "It was in Paris maybe two or three years ago. It was the summer but he told me that his name was Michael Lynch."

Steve could have sworn violently at that moment but felt lucky enough that he was able to keep control of himself. Beside him Danny had folded his arms across his chest with a look of disbelief on his face almost like a bouncer denying someone entry to a club. Over Arlington's shoulder Steve met Axel's eyes briefly and for once he could read loud and clear what she was thinking: did you really think he'd give in that easy?

"Hesse's mug-shot has been all over the news," Steve stated heatedly, "and he hasn't changed much in the three years so why did you deny knowing him when you could clearly tell that he was the same man?"

"Commander, please," Arlington said with an arrogant smile that made Steve tick, "I am an extremely busy man. I don't get time to read the papers or watch the news. Here I am supposed to be on holiday with my darling Sophia who has been nothing but dreadfully neglected by me, haven't you sweetheart?"

Arlington grabbed the hand Axel had resting on the back of his chair and kissed it, smiling up at her in quite a convincing show of affection. Axel's answering smile was even more so, full of sweetness and pleasure that it made Steve feel physically sick to see it. Sometimes he hated that she was such a good actress because he would have really loved to see her recoil in disgust even just once from the men that she had to charm into her bed.

"Darling, ye ken I can take care of myself," Axel told him, "and it's no like there isn't plenty tae do on the island. Trust me when I say I'm used tae ye working all the time. A man's work is never done, right detectives?"

She smiled brightly at Steve and Danny with a display of excellent teeth, making her seem as though she totally lacked understanding of the situation. She sounded as though she could be some sort of Stepford wife with that particular cliché. Steve nearly snorted at the thought of Axel spending all day at home baking, looking after children, cleaning the house and putting dinner on the table for when a husband returned home from work. There were four words that sprang to mind along with that image: never going to happen.

"What did you talk about?" Steve asked Arlington taking his mind away from the ludicrous images in his head.

"When?" Arlington responded in a clear attempt to infuriate them, not taking his gaze from Axel and although according to him Steve was the irate one it was Danny that reacted.

"Oh, when you and Miss Lauder went to the opera the other night," he replied with sarcasm dropping from every syllable and his hands gesticulating wildly. "You know exactly when, so don't act like a fool. What did you and Hesse talk about at your two day meeting?"

Arlington turned his attention back to them then, dropping Axel's hand.

"Oh," the Englishman feigned surprise at Danny's tone, "well, you only had to ask detective. Mr Lynch was interested in becoming an investor with my company so whilst I was in Paris I organised a meeting with him to discuss investor opportunities and the future of the company, what his returns would be, that sort of thing. He seemed very keen to get involved and I came away from our meetings thinking I had a new investor. I am now aware of why he didn't choose to invest in my company and I'll admit that I am relieved he didn't since he is a terrorist."

Arlington looked between Steve and Danny with a sympathetic expression on his face that Steve didn't understand. He wanted to search the house but he didn't think Arlington was going to just allow them to stroll through his mansion and anyway, like Danny had pointed out, if Victor did show his face Axel's cameras would catch him.

"I am sorry that is not the answer you were looking for," Arlington said with a certain smugness in his tone, "but I am nothing but a simple businessman who you seem to enjoy harassing. I have no knowledge of the murders or this fugitive Mr Hesse and I am certainly not harbouring him."

Arlington's expression was not far off the look of a school teacher who was telling off a student for misbehaving for the hundredth time. It made Steve want to reach over the desk and punch him in his lying mouth. A move that would not go down well with Governor Denning one little bit.

"If that is all gentlemen," Arlington continued rising from his chair, "I have a business meeting to get to and I cannot afford to lose any more time."

His dismissal was clear and there was nothing either Steve or Danny could do. Arlington had given a justifiable reason for his meeting with Victor and it wasn't as though they had any more evidence to link him to Hesse other than the photographs. Steve's gaze flickered to Axel to see the ghost of the smile play on her lips before he looked back at Arlington. He could be as smug as he wanted for the moment because little did he know that he was about to be brought down by the woman standing next to him.

"Thank you for your time, Mr Arlington," Steve forced his voice into a tone of politeness. "We're sorry to have disturbed you. Danny."

Danny gathered the photos off the desk and then followed Steve to the door.

"Detectives," Arlington called out to them as they reached the door, "maybe you should focus on apprehending this fugitive instead of harassing innocent visitors to your fair state."

Steve glared at him.

"Mr Arlington," he responded in icy tones, "I would suggest that you think about flying out your lawyer."

With that parting comment the two men left the room. The blond bodyguard was waiting for them in the corridor his hands clasped in front of him. He nodded to them and then led them down the hallway to the front door. Back out in the sunshine Steve and Danny got into the car in silence and Steve pulled away down the drive. It was a few minutes before either of them spoke.

"With that last shot you'll be lucky if he doesn't report you to the Governor," Danny said.

"He can report it to the Governor all he wants," Steve replied a lot calmer than he felt, "he's suspected of involvement in two murders and he's got a connection to Victor Hesse. No matter what he says we know for a fact that he's lying. He sent his bloody girlfriend to visit Victor in prison. The Governor can't dispute that there is definitely something there."

"Steve," Danny responded with exaggerated patience that was unusual for him, "we have circumstantial evidence at best. Everything to do with this case is wrapped up in Axel, who you can't tell the Governor about so from Governor Denning's point of view we've got absolutely nothing concrete."

Steve knew Danny was right but that didn't make him any less irritated with the whole situation. Axel was an MI6 and on American soil that was a bad occupation to be especially since she was here without prior knowledge of the American Government. It wasn't like they would care whether she was undercover or whether the person she was investigating was actually a British citizen. They would automatically see her as a threat.

"You and I," Danny continued, "along with Axel are going to bring this guy down. We're going to find Victor Hesse and put him back behind bars. If we're lucky we'll also bring down Malika Pereira, John Da Cova and even Wo Fat. Since we've had no leads to go with Wo Fat I think that this is the best opportunity we're going to get for him to resurface. Don't you think we should take that chance?"

Steve gripped the wheel tighter for a moment at the thought of finally being able to bring down Wo Fat.

"We just need to sit tight."

Steve glanced at his partner and finally smiled.

"Okay, Danny, we'll sit tight," he said, "and then we'll bring the whole fucking lot of them down."

* * *

><p><em>Well there it is my darlings. I hope you enjoyed it. I really wanted to show more of Arlington because we've not had a lot of interaction with him. I'm starting the next chapter right now and after tomorrow I'm off work for two weeks. Admittedly I'm going home to Scotland for a week of that but never fear I'm taking the laptop with me. So hopefully you'll get quicker updates. Can't wait to hear what you think.<em>

_Thank you all for the reviews so far. It really makes my day to check my email and realise there is another review for this story. So go on make me smile for a day._

_Kerr x._

_P.S. I've posted a one-shot about Steve's first meeting with Axel. It's called We must return to the scene of the crime, if you'd like to check it out._


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